(Will Lovings-Watts had a huge night but it wasn't enough)

 

On Friday night, Castle and Jeffersonville ended their respective seasons with a non-conference clash.

 

The Castle Knights started with nine straight points, and Brayden Bishop and Caleb Niehaus accounted for all nine points as the Knights swarmed the offensive glass early.

 

Jeffersonville senior guard Kobe Stoudemire broke the seal with a three-pointer, then Will Lovings-Watts asserted himself into the game. His transition dunk capped a 13-0 Jeffersonville run.

 

Donavon Cunningham came off the Castle bench to score the final two field goals of the quarter.

 

Brandon Rayzor-Moore hit a mid-range shot off one of his teammate’s misses. The Jeffersonville senior shot well early on his way to ten points and three steals in the first half.

 

Bishop and Niehaus helped Castle retake the lead down after being down a couple of scores. Niehaus flew around the floor in the first half. He had six points, ten rebounds, and three assists in the first half.

 

Lovings-Watts carried over his great first-period into the second. He popped up whenever Jeff needed a play. The Drake signee accumulated 14 points, five rebounds, two blocks, and a steal by halftime.

 

Behind Lovings-Watts, Jeffersonville led 30-23 at halftime.

 

After scoring three points in the first half, Weston Aigner, Castle’s leading scorer on the season, scored six points in the first 42 seconds of the second half. He did not slow down much from there. Aigner helped Castle sprint to the third-quarter lead by scoring 16 points in the quarter.

 

The Jeffersonville offense struggled to get clean shot attempts in the third as turnovers plagued the Red Devils.

 

Aigner started the fourth with another bucket, then Jackson Mitchell drained a three to give Castle a 47-41 lead.

 

Like most of the game, Castle’s two-possession lead did not last long. Lovings-Watts scored or assisted the first four Jeffersonville scores of the fourth quarter. He played a fantastic game from start to finish.

 

Castle led by four points with 90 seconds left when Rayzor-Moore took off in transition. He did not make the dunk, but he quickly jumped again to put back his miss to make it 55-53.

 

Stoudemire stole the inbound pass to give Jeffersonville a chance to tie or take the lead. And, the Red Devils did precisely that. Lovings-Watts skied for an offensive rebound before finding Monnie McGee for a layup.

 

The game was tied with 30 seconds left when Jeffersonville fouled Bishop. He could not put Castle on top, but Niehaus chased down the offensive rebound. On the pursuit, Niehaus was fouled as well. This time, Castle converted both free throws.

 

As Jeffersonville tried to tie or take the lead, Castle had fouls to give and used them to milk time off the clock. It worked to perfection as the Red Devils could not find a good look. Michael Cooper tried a desperation three, but it missed.

 

Castle won 57-55 behind 27 points, nine rebounds, and three steals from Aigner. Twenty-four of those points came after halftime. Bishop added 11 points, three rebounds, and two assists. Niehaus tallied eight points, 13 rebounds, and four assists. Mitchell recorded five points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

 

Lovings-Watts led Jeffersonville with 20 points, 12 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks. Rayzor-Moore added 18 points, seven rebounds, three steals, and three blocks. Stoudemire compiled nine points, five steals, and three assists. Cooper tallied five assists, two points, and two rebounds.

 

Castle ended the regular season at 15-7. Jeffersonville drops to 7-11 and plays Bedford North Lawrence on Tuesday to begin the Seymour sectional.