The visiting Spartans jumped on New Castle early, racing out to a 8-2 advantage thanks to threes from Chandler Graves and Grant Smith. Smith would be the story of the first quarter for Connersville, scoring on multiple drives and spin moves in the lane, and provided the game's most impressive play when he streaked a passing lane and took off for a two handed slam on a New Castle defender. Smith, however, was whistled for a technical on the play for hanging on the rim, and Andrew Garrett would hit both of the technical free throws.  

 

That play seemed to spark New Castle, as they would end the quarter on a 14-4 run thanks to a pair of threes each from Andrew Garrett and David Froedge. Garrett would tally 12 points in the frame, one more than Grant Smith, and New Castle would establish a lead after their slow start.

 

Garrett would continue with his hot hand in the second, starting off with two more three pointers in the opening minute, forcing Kerry Brown of Connersville to call timeout to try and cool off the 5'9 senior. The 1-3-1 zone of New Castle forced Connersville into some difficult shots, but New Castle struggled to find much offense outside of Garrett and Froedge. The teams would keep the same margin as the first quarter, as New Castle took a six point lead into the locker rooms.

 

The story of the second half would be the play of Connersville's 6'4 junior wing Grant Smith. Smith, and to a lesser extent Tyler Billups, would put the rest of the Spartans on their back during the final 16 minutes. "Both those guys started last year, are veterans, and that's the type of play you expect out of them. It didn't surpise me, and they led us, carried us," said Connersville coach Kerry Brown.

 

Being guarded by the bigger yet slower and less experienced Mason Gillis of New Castle, Smith would make the lane his personal workshop, scoring on a variety of drives and off balance runners. He was also able to put Gillis in foul trouble, limiting the freshman's effectiveness.

 

Smith would go on a personal 10-0 run for the Spartans spanning the third and fourth quarters, ending on a lovely coast to coast take with a reverse layup and foul. He would hit the free throw as the Connersville faithful rose to their feet. Billups would be a destructive force on the defensive end, getting deflections and steals and turning them into points for either himself or Smith. "We extended our defense and got deflections, which is something we don't do a lot of. The tempo was to their liking, but we had to do something to change it up, and disrupt their rhythm," said Brown.

 

New Castle would not go away, however. Andrew Garrett adeptly drew a foul shooting and sank the first two free throws before missing the third. David Froedge would be fouled shooting a three pointer and hit all three of his free throws. After a pair of Grant Smith free throws, Andrew Garrett would fire one from just inside the center court logo that hit nothing but the bottom of the net, bringing the deficit to three with just over a minute left. 

 

But Connersville would make their free throws in the final minute, and a couple of New Castle three pointers would not be enough. Tyler Billups would cap off the night for the Spartans with a dunk at the buzzer, giving Connersville a hard fought road win. Billups and Smith would score 32 of Connersville's 45 second half points.