Knoch withstands test in victory against Indiana

By: Jerin Steele
Friday, February 2, 2024 | 10:12 PM

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On this Groundhog Day, the Knoch boys basketball team was looking to avoid a repeat of last Friday, when it was upset at home by Freeport.

The Knights were dragged into a rock fight by visiting Indiana through two quarters, but, led by Jackson Bauman, they hit their stride in the second half and pulled away for a 51-41 win in a Section 1-4A game Friday night.

Bauman finished with a game-high 18 points, including eight in the third quarter. With some strong drives to the lane in transition, he helped Knoch start the second half on a 10-0 run. The Knights led by four at halftime, but the run gave them a double-digit lead they held the rest of the way.

“We want to play fast and get into transition to get easy buckets and set up our offense,” Bauman said. “That way we can get into the halfcourt and move the ball to get rhythm shots. That’s our goal.”

Knoch (13-6, 6-2) outscored Indiana, 19-9, in the third quarter. The Indians (8-11, 2-6) were without leading scorer Stanford Webb because of injury.

Derek Lang had a pair of 3-pointers in the third for the Knights, and Zarian Finucan hit a 3 from the right side. It was a big bucket for the senior on senior night. Typically a reserve, he got the start with fellow senior Jacob Fox.

“That shot was huge,” Knoch coach Alan Bauman said. “We drew that up out of the timeout. We wanted to get it into the high post. We were driving (Zarian), Derek (Lang) did a good job of staying strong and hitting him with the pass and he hit a really big shot that I felt was a separator for us.”

Prior to Knoch pulling away, a combination of cold shooting and tough defense from Indiana led to a low-scoring affair.

The Knights took some lessons from last week’s 61-55 loss to Freeport, came out in the second half and took control.

“Unfortunately a loss like that is something a young team has to go through, and that was the first one that hurt,” Coach Bauman said. “We lost to Armstrong, and it didn’t impact us because it didn’t do anything to the section. They were able to dismiss it, but that (Freeport) loss shook them. The last two games, (against Greensburg Salem) and tonight, you can see we’re getting back to where we want to be. I always tell them, anything that is worth something you have to go through pain and suffering.”

Teegan Finucan had 13 points for the Knights, including 10 in the first half.

Aaron Webb led Indiana with 15 points, and Tristan Redinger scored 11.

Indiana plays Freeport next Friday, which likely will determine the fourth and final playoff spot in Section 1.

Knoch hosts section leader Hampton on Tuesday and travels to third-place Highlands for its section finale. Those games will determine whether Knoch finishes with a top-two spot in the standings.

“It’ll be a fun week,” Coach Bauman said. “What a great way to go into the playoffs, playing Hampton and Highlands, both teams will get us ready. They are both so well coached. There’s Division I kids on both teams. It’ll be a great challenge.

Jerin Steele is a freelance writer

Tags: Indiana, Knoch