Brock Netter, Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — There’s overcoming adversity, and then there’s what Chillicothe had to overcome on Saturday.
A night that started with a crosstown rivalry grabbing headlines quickly turned into a community rallying around the Cavaliers in a moment of crisis.
Midway through the second quarter, a medical emergency nearly claimed one of their own when medics were called to attend to Chillicothe assistant coach — and local coaching legend — Gary Kellough.
And the emotional toll on the team was evident as it dug a 34-24 hole midway through the third quarter, forcing head coach Pat Beard to call timeout.
“When you have young kids, and they see what they saw, it quickly puts a lot of things into perspective. It becomes bigger than just a game, but it’s tough to reel them back in when there’s still a game to be played,” Beard said. “I called that timeout and asked them one question. ‘What would Coach want us to do? Give up, or fight and give ourselves a chance to win this game?’ I knew I had their attention when I saw how they looked at me, and they knew what needed to happen.”
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
What followed for the final 12 minutes of game time was the most emotional and inspired basketball Chillicothe could have played.
Playing with heavy hearts, the Cavaliers stormed back to outscore the Shermans by a 29-16 margin in that time span, putting away a 53-50 win in non-league action.
“I’m so proud of the guys. They could have given up and it could’ve been a 30-point blowout. But they did not quit in the face of adversity,” Beard said. “I love the fact we came together to do this tonight and they gave such an incredible effort.”
Noah Netter scored four early points for the Cavaliers (6-1), but Unioto’s Isaac Coy answered with a triple plus a foul shot for a 9-6 lead.
Netter, Karter Williams and Andrew Hamman all connected on buckets to end the first quarter with the Cavs ahead, 12-11.
Hamman and Caydon Cox opened the second with back-to-back buckets, producing a 6-0 run that extended the lead to 16-11.
Both teams then traded the next three buckets before time stopped — quite literally. The game was paused for roughly 10 minutes for something much bigger than basketball.
“This is such a big rivalry, and it’s even more special because it’s a game between schools that are just two miles away, although we don’t play each other much,” Cox said. “It means a lot that in that moment, the game just stops and everyone comes together like family.”
Once the game resumed with the Cavaliers ahead 22-17, Coy knocked down two free throws before Blake Fitch scored at the buzzer to bring the score to 22-21 at halftime.
Unioto’s Jack Welch opened the second half with a floater, and went on a heater from there.
PHOTOS: Images from Chillicothe’s win over Unioto
He connected on his next three shot attempts, all from distance, before Jaxon Zickafoose scored a runout bucket for a 13-2 run, putting the Shermans (6-1) ahead 34-24.
Fresh out of the aforementioned timeout and with a renewed sense of purpose in their eyes, the Cavaliers went back to work.
“We wanted to win it for Coach K,” Cox said. “That was all that mattered to us.”
Cox split a pair at the stripe and followed that by splashing a 3. He scored again, alongside buckets from Hamman and Cooper Stoneking, ending the frame on a 10-4 spree to cut the deficit to 38-34.
Chillicothe then cut it to 40-38, but Coy got three points the hard way to extend the lead back to two possessions.
And that’s where the Cavs made their final move.
Cox buried his second 3 of the night, then scored a pair of buckets, alongside scores from Stoneking, Hamman and Netter, to polish off an 13-2 run to take a 51-45 advantage with a minute left.
“Coach ripped me during halftime, but my teammates continued to encourage me on the floor,” Cox said. “Once I saw the first shot go in, I just kept going from there.”
Unioto continued fighting, though.
Fitch knocked down a jumper, Welch split a pair at the line and Fitch hit two at the stripe to bring the Shermans to within 51-50.
But Stoneking was able to knock down 2-of-4 at the line to make it 53-50, forcing the Shermans to settle for a last minute heave. But that half court shot was off target, sending the Cavaliers on a short trip home with a victory.
“We had to get downhill and simply continue attacking the rim. That’s our game and what Coach continued to tell us,” Stoneking said. “My shots weren’t falling that much, but I just kept attacking and knocked down my free throws. Thank goodness I made a couple of them.”
Cox finished with a game-high 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Stoneking had 14 points. Hamman added 12 points.
For Unioto, Welch finished with 17 points, followed by Coy with 13, and Fitch with 11.
Chillicothe returns to action on Tuesday at Logan Elm for non-conference play, while Unioto rebounds on Saturday at Jackson.
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