Tipp wins MVL basketball championship
Everyone in the gym knew exactly what was at stake on Friday night. A victory over Vandalia Butler and the Miami Valley League (MVL) boys basketball championship would belong solely to the Red Devils.
Despite a blazing fast start, the Red Devils had to survive for their life as Butler held a lead with just over two minutes left. Tipp went on a 7-0 run to close out the victory. This earned the league title with a 51-47 victory over the Aviators to finish the league with a 16-2 MVL record, two games ahead of second-place Butler.
Tipp opened the first nine minutes and were in complete control 18-4, as Butler fans were wondering if their team would snap out of their doldrums. They did just that, actually cutting their deficit to five points in the period, making the game close the rest of the way.
“It was an up and down game, and it was a great way to start,” Tipp coach Brock Moon said. “But we let them back in the game. Luckily, we hit a big shot at the half to keep the game in double digits.”
“They made another run in the third quarter, but our kids battled back. It turned into a similar story for us this year, we still haven’t put together four quarters yet. That is a challenge for us, and now the tournament is here, and we face an opponent where we may be going home early if we can’t put four quarters together.”
The Red Devils opened on fire as Preston Zumwalt and CJ Bailey hit threes in the opening period and exploded out to a 16-4 lead after one period of play.
Just that quickly, Charlie Neely brought Butler back as he scored 11 consecutive points to close the deficit to 20-15 with 4:30 left in the half.
Bailey broke the string for Butler, then Zumwalt connected on five quick points to push the Tipp lead back out to 28-17. Butler scored seven straight before Bailey and Colin Turner closed out the half with points. This put the Red Devils in front 33-23 heading to the second half.
Butler scored the first 14 points of the third quarter to give them a lead with 4:35 left in the third. That's how the second half would go, as both teams kept the game close. The game was tied three times in the final eight minutes.
Down the stretch, Tipp hit on free throws in the final two minutes to secure the game. Bailey led Tipp with 18, Zumwalt added 16 and ten for Turner.
Tipp now travels to Centerville on Thursday night against Stebbins in the opening round of the Division Three tournament. It is a 6 p.m. tipoff.
