Blue Devils boys prevail in overtime marathon

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Plattsmouth (7-5) 14 15 18   9 10 10 76
Platteview (5-9)    18 11 12 15 10  8 74

Game Stats

Platteview and Plattsmouth were originally scheduled to play back on January 8, but a snowstorm forced postponement of the game. The wait was worth it as the two Eastern Midlands Conference rivals squared off in a memorable double-overtime marathon that nearly required a third extra period.

After Plattsmouth senior Derek Sutton missed the second of two free throws with six seconds left, Trojans junior Justin Meyer grabbed the rebound and dribbled the length of the court uncontested. But his layup bounced harmlessly off the rim as the buzzer sounded to preserve the Blue Devils' 76-74 win.

The game was a dandy from the start.

Platteview trailed 12-4 early but used a 14-2 run to close out the first quarter. The Blue Devils surged ahead with a 9-3 run of its own to open the second quarter and built a 23-21 advantage. By halftime the score was knotted at 29 all following senior Matt Gilleland's steal and layup for Platteview.

Plattsmouth opened the second half with a 12-3 run and appeared to take control of the game at 41-32 with 3 ½ minutes left in the third quarter. A 10-foot pull-up jumper by senior Andy Elliff, followed by sophomore Dylan Wills' 3-pointer from the right corner, trimmed the Plattsmouth lead to 45-41 before a layup by the Devils' Ross Dzuris ended the scoring in the third quarter.

The Blue Devils led by nine at 53-44 just over two minutes into the fourth quarter after a layup plus a free throw by senior Andrew Mitteis. But Plattsmouth scored just three more points down the stretch as Platteview rallied.

Back-to-back 3s by senior Adam Heimes pulled Platteview even at 54-54 with 2:21 left in regulation. Plattsmouth senior Brenden Argento answered with a 12-foot fade away jumper. Then the Trojans' Kevin Glasshoff scored on a layup with 40 seconds left to tie the game again.

Plattsmouth ran the clock down and turned to Mitteis to win the game, but he was closely guarded by Platteview's David Negrete and didn't get a good shot off as time expired.

The Trojans used a 3-pointer from senior Andy Elliff and a layup by Heimes to take a 63-60 lead in overtime. With 45 seconds left, Platteview had a chance to regain a 3-point advantage, but senior Gage Wichman made one of two free throws in the double bonus. Plattsmouth's Argento then made both of his free throws with 26 seconds before Wichman missed an off-balance jumper at the buzzer from 10 feet out to set up a second overtime.

Heimes scored all but one of Platteview's eight points in the second extra period, including his fourth 3-pointer of the night and second in overtime with 36 second left to pull the Trojans within 75-74 and set up the dramatic finish.

"I was proud of our guys' effort in coming back from a fourth-quarter deficit and finding a way to stay in the game," said Platteview coach John Stanton. "We competed well. The bottom line, though, is that we didn’t win the game."

Stanton added he was very pleased with his team's offensive production but insisted defense was the key to the final outcome.

"We needed to get some stops down the stretch and we didn’t," Stanton said. "We either gave up a field goal or put Plattsmouth on the line."

Adam Heimes did everything he could to get his team a badly-needed win and finished with a season-high 23 points. Gage Wichman scored 13 before fouling out in the second overtime. Andy Elliff finished with 10.

Plattsmouth's starters scored all of the Blue Devils' points and finished in double figures led by Andrew Mitteis with a game-high 29 points. He went 6-for-7 from the free throw line in overtime. Brenden Argento scored 15. Andy Sutton and Ross Dzuris each added 11, and Corey Cundall chipped in 10.

Both teams enjoyed a good shooting night. Platteview shot 51 percent, including a season-best 10 of 19 on 3-pointers. Plattsmouth shot 52 percent and made five of 15 3s. The Trojans won the rebounding battle 25-15.


GAME STATS (Points, Rebounds, Assists, Steals, Blocked Shots)

Elliff 10, 2, 3, 1, 0
Gilleland 7, 1, 2, 0, 0
Glasshoff 6, 4, 0, 0, 1
Heimes 23, 0, 1, 3, 0
Herrmann 1, 1, 0, 3, 0
Meyer 7, 4, 1, 0, 1
Negrete 1, 4, 1, 0, 1
Wichman 13, 6, 6, 0, 0
Wills 6, 2, 4, 0, 0

Totals 74, 24, 18, 7, 3