Class A #4 Indianapolis Tindley took on 4A Noblesville Wednesday night in a back and forth affair. The Tigers used a run in the beginning of the fourth to take control of the game and held on for the victory.

Noblesville sophomore Luke Almodovar stole the show in the first half. He connected on three three-pointers on his way to 13 points. Noah Harris gave the Millers a major boost as well with his all-around game. The senior forward rebounded well and even handled the ball a lot for Noblesville. Behind Almodovar and Harris, Noblesville led 26-21 at the half.

Tindley senior Jashawnn Bates was consistent from start to finish for the Tigers. The big wing had 10 points in each half. Bates mixed it up with threes and buckets in the lane. Bates and Aaron Humphrey powered the Tindley offense for most of the night. Humphrey had a big third quarter to keep the Tigers within striking distance.

After Noblesville held a slim leading for most of the first three quarters, Tindley started the final period on a 16-6 run. Sophomore Billy Brown had a slow start to the game as his outside shot was off the mark, but he started to get it going with Bates and Jayden Pinkston. Brown threw a pass over the Noblesville defense that found Pinkston for an easy layup. The next possession, Pinkston followed a Brown miss with a massive putback dunk.

As a result of being fouled on a three, Bates made all three of his free throws to put Tindley up 51-44. After that, Tindley’s passing broke down as the Millers picked up the pressure. Tindley had three turnovers in a row – two were converted for points. One was a dunk by Harris and the other was a layup plus the foul from Almodovar. Moments later, Preston Roberts shot the passing lane in the backcourt for a steal and dunk to pull Noblesville within 53-52.

With Tindley up one and 70 seconds to play, both teams traded missed shots then Brown buried a risky corner three with 25 seconds left. That pushed Tindley’s lead to four. There aren’t many players that can pull off that shot.

In a low possession game, both teams had the turnover bug. As an illustration, there were four turnovers in the final 16 seconds. The final one gave Noblesville the ball back down four with 1.4 seconds. The in-bounds pass found Almodovar for another three at the buzzer.

Tindley walked away the 56-55 winner. Bates led Tindley with 20 points and six rebounds. Humphrey added 15 points, nine rebounds, and four steals. Brown finished with 11 points and four assists.

Almodovar had a game-high 23 points in the loss. He was 4-9 from three-point range. Freshman Aaron Fine came off the Noblesville bench for 10 points. All his points were scored in the second half.

Tindley 56 – Aaron Humphrey 15 points (6-8 FG, 1-2 3FG, 2-5 FT), 9 rebounds, 6 turnovers, 4 steals; Jashawnn Bates 20 points (6-9 FG,  2-4 3FG, 6-7 FT), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 turnovers, 1 steal; Jayden Pinkston 7 points (3-7 FG, 0-2 3FG, 1-4 FT), 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 turnovers, 3 blocks, 2 steals; Billy Brown 11 points (4-12 FG, 3-10 3FG), 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 turnovers; Arlondo Hall 3 points, Darion Davids 3 rebounds

Noblesville 55 – EJ Smith 3 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, 4 turnovers, 1 steal; Josh Durham 7 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 turnovers; Noah Harris 5 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 block, 4 steals; Preston Roberts 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals; Luke ALmodovar 23 points (7-14 FG, 4-9 3FG, 5-7 FT), 4 rebounds, 5 turnovers, 1 steal; David Lloyd 3 points, 2 assists, 1 turnover, 1 steal; Aaron Fine 10 points (5-10 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-1 FT), 3 rebounds, 1 turnover, 1 block