First time watching Pendleton Heights this season. They are led by junior Kellen Dunham; who is verbally committed to Butler. Pendleton Heights point guard Kendall Waters received bad news last week about his back needing surgery. His career on the basketball court is uncertain. We wish him the best in his recovery! Sixth time seeing North Central this season and 7th if you count their scrimmage. Check out my previous game reports against Luers, Pike, Southport, Hamilton Southeastern, and Bowman Academy. North Central point guard D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera recently picked up offers from Texas and Florida.
On paper, the game looked like it would be a blow out in favor of North Central with Pendleton Heights missing Kendall Waters. Kellen Dunham played well from the start though. Dunham had 8 first quarter points. North Central lacked their killer instinct tonight. They weren't totally flat, but they weren't sharp, attacking, or focused on the defensive end. Pendleton Heights led 15-14 after one quarter of play.
North Central coach Doug Mitchell usually uses his bench liberally, but tonight he went to it earlier and ever more often. Part of that is the fact North Central plays Brownsburg Tuesday night, but also because his starters weren't performing at a high level. D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera got off to a slow start. His outside shot wasn't falling and he wasn't getting to the rim. DSR only had 8 first half points. Kellen Dunham continued to play well in the second quarter. He did most of his damage from the free-throw line where he went 10-10. Dunham scored 22 first half points and only missed 1 shot from the field. Pendleton Heights led 32-30 at halftime.
At halftime, most figured that North Central would get their act together and play better in the second half. Plus, it took a great half by Dunham to give Pendleton Heights just a two point lead. North Central didn't start the half well though. Pendleton Heights ran their offense to perfection and got 3 straight lay ups to take a 38-30 lead. That led to North Central taking a time-out.
After the time-out, North Central started to get to the rim more consistently and locked down on defense. North Central would end the quarter on an 8-0 run. That run would stretch to 16-0 in the fourth quarter. Dunham couldn't get an open shot in the second half. Dunham wouldn't get his first two points in the second half until 3 minutes were left in the fourth quarter. Without Dunham carrying the scoring load, Pendleton Heights couldn't keep up with North Central.
D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera would hit 6 free-throws down the stretch of the game after starting out just 1-5 from the line. Pendleton Heights still had their chances, but couldn't get a shot to fall when they needed it. North Central beat Pendleton Heights 54-45.
Kellen Dunham led all scorers with 27 points. D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera led North Central with 19 points.
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For North Central player evaluations check out these past game reports against Pike, Southport, Hamilton Southeastern, and Bowman Academy
Kellen Dunham 6'5 SG 2012 Pendleton Heights
Dunham is forced to handle the ball a lot with point guard Kendall Waters injured. He did a pretty good job against the pressure of North Central, but he isn't completely comfortable doing it yet. It looks like he will be able to handle the ball some for Butler though. He was able to get to the rim and draw fouls in the first half. He is a great free-throw shooter so that is a big plus. His best ability is still shooting the ball from deep though. Dunham has some work to do defensively. There were a couple times where North Central players beat him off of one dribble.
Brogan Gary 6'3 SF 2013 Pendleton Heights
Gary has a nice built for a sophomore. He is a good shooter, but his shot didn't fall tonight. His shots were on line but he couldn't get them down. He will have to add more of a dribble game to be a college prospect but he played the game with a nice intelligence. He used shot fakes to get North Central defenders off balance. LM/D2/NAIA prospect down the road.{/iACL}
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