There were plenty of pregame topics for Tiger fans to discuss before Friday night's clash between the Warsaw Tigers and Wawasee Warriors. Topics like -- How many points would be scored in this shootout? Could Warsaw sustain 32 minutes of high-tempo basketball or would Coach Ogle attempt to slow the game down? Would Warsaw star Nic Moore play at all on his bad ankle?

Nic Moore did not start this game for the Tigers leaving fans to wonder his status.

Off to the races. The Tigers and Warriors would put on a show from the beginning. Any questions about the tempo of the game were answered early. Both teams came out looking to push the ball and take advantage of any openings the defenses would present.

Warsaw senior Andy Conrad set the tone in the first minute for the Tigers. Conrad ripped down two big rebounds off of Warrior misses. He then found a wide open Jordyn Coon for the first 2 points of the contest. Sophomore Lucas Grose skied for an offensive rebound on the next Warsaw possession. Grose quickly converted the rebound into points as the Tigers led 4-0 less than a minute into the game.

After Senior Justin Clemens connected on a lay-up to give Warsaw a 6-2 advantage, Wawasee standout Riley Stichter scored on two consecutive possessions to tie the score at 6-6. Wawasee would take the lead 8-6 with 6:20 to go in the first -- enter Nic Moore.

Junior Nic Moore reported to the scorers bench at the 5:49 mark of the first. Moore wasted no time getting involved in the offense. On the first Tiger possession after he reported in, Moore drained a 3-pointer from the left wing to bring the Tiger faithful to their feet. The Tiger Cheer block, dressed in their Pirates and Ninja outfits, serenaded Nic with a "WELCOME BACK" chant.

Moore's 3 pointer would give the Tigers a 9-8 lead.

Though Moore was back in action, teammate Justin Clemens began to dominate the floor for Warsaw. Clemens scored the next 4 points and dished out 3 first quarter assists. Clemens found sophomores Jalen Roscoe and Lucas Grose under the basket for lay ins.

Wawasee guard Jacob Thompson connected on the Warrior's first 3 point bomb with just 2:27 remaining in the 1st narrow the Tiger lead to 19-18. Lucas Grose, who scored 6 first quarter points, converted a Nic Moore assist into 2 points for a 21-18 Warsaw advantage.

The pace was furious as both teams executed their offensive transition games.

After a Keegan Beer 3 pointer for Wawasee, Nic Moore rose above the defense to make a 12 foot jumper before the end of the quarter. It appeared as though the first team to score 100 points would win this NLC thriller.

End of 1st Quarter: Warsaw 25 - Wawasee 23

The second quarter saw much of the same action as the first. Andy Conrad scored the first 2 points of the 2nd to start a 6-0 run for Warsaw. Again, sophomores Lucas Grose and Jalen Roscoe scored baskets during the run.

Stichter, who picked up two early fouls for Wawasee, would answer the Tiger run by scoring the next five points to cut the Warsaw lead down to 3 points 31-28. Senior Zack Linky, coming off a season high 10 points against Rochester last week, began to get in the action with a basket at the 5:30 mark of the 2nd.

Wawasee found themselves beginning to rack up the fouls as they put the Tigers in the bonus with more than four minutes left in the half. Would Warsaw capitalize? The Tigers would connect on 10 of 16 (63%) free throws in the first half.

Justin Clemens found his wide receiver Zack Linky for a basket at with 4:05 remaining in the half. Linky returned the favor to his quarterback on the next possession to put the Tigers up by twelve 43-31. Keegan Beer would answer with a 3 pointer for the Warriors. Wawasee who is known for their run-and-gun style of play attempted 11 three point shots in the first half, only connecting on 3.

Justin Clemens hit another lay up for the Tigers with 1:36 left until break. After consecutive Wawasee baskets, Clemens would then show his range from behind the arc as time expired. Justin stepped back with .01 seconds on the clock to swish a jump shot from 22 feet. As his shot went through the basket, the horn sounded and the neon pink lights flashed on the back board signaling the end of the half.

The Tigers outscored Wawasee 24-19 in the second frame as their lead swelled to ten points.

Clemens led Warsaw with 12 first half points. Grose scored 9, Linky 8, and the trio of Nic Moore, Jalen Roscoe, and Jordyn Coon added 7 each to lead a balanced Tiger attack. Warsaw passed the ball extremely well as they racked up 15 assists thru the first 16 minutes. Moore had 6 assists while Clemens added 5 dimes of his own.

Halftime Score: Warsaw 52 - Wawasee 42

Warsaw continued to move the ball against the Warrior defense in the 3rd. Moore, who finished with 9 assists, found Jordyn Coon for the half's first points. After a Warrior three point bomb, Coon attempted to take matters in his own hands stealing a Wawasee pass in the open court. Coon headed for the basket with no defenders in sight. Jordyn rose up to the rim for a slam-dunk. His attempt fell a bit short with the ball bouncing off the front iron. He did however get a reaction from the near 3,000 fans who just realized he has the hops to pull of a dunk this year.

Riley Stichter, who came in averaging more than 20 points per game for Wawasee, began to find his rhythm connecting on a left-handed floater in the lane. Warsaw's lead was 56-47.

Clemens and Stichter would trade baskets before Warsaw would make a run. Baskets by Jalen Roscoe, Nic Moore, and of course Clemens capped a 6-0 run for the Tigers extending their lead to 64-49. Wawasee would stop the run with a free throw, but only momentarily. Lucas Grose made 1 of 2 free throws and Justin Clemens banked in a jumper from the left block extend to give Warsaw their largest lead of the game at 67-50. Timeout Wawasee with 2 minutes left in the 3rd.

Stichter and Jacob Thompson would keep Wawasee in the game with consecutive 3 point shots. Clemens, who finished the night with 28 points, answered with 3 points of his own. Nic Moore followed Clemens with 2 free throws and a leaner in the lane as the 3rd period came to an end. The Tigers scored 26 points in the quarter while Wawasee managed just 19.

End of 3rd quarter: Warsaw 75 - Wawasee 61

The fourth quarter pace slowed a bit as the referees began to call every knick knackfoul on both teams. In all, there were 58 fouls called in the game. The majority of which came in the fourth.

Clemens went to the line 14 times in the game connecting on 9 charity stripe attempts. Clemens was also 9 of 11 from the floor including 1 for 1 from 3pt range. Moore connected on 6/7 free throw attempts and 5 of 8 field goals for 17 points in his return after missing both the Huntington North and Rochester games.

Keegan Beer led the Warrior attack scoring 20 points. Jacob Thompson scored 19 while Riley Stichter went for 18 points. Wawasee shot 40% from the field in this game connecting on 24/60 field goals. Sometimes you live by the 3 pointer and others you die by 3 ball. Tonight, the Warriors fate rested in the later, as they connected on just 32% (8/25) from behind the arc.

The Tigers fared much better as they converted 60% (34/56) of their shot attempts. Excellent passing led to 24 Tiger assists compared to just 10 for the Warriors.

The biggest difference in this game was the depth of the Tigers. Warsaw's bench outscored Wawasee's reserves by a whopping 20 points. The Tigers scored 29 bench points while Wawasee managed just 9.

Although senior Zack Linky has started the past 2 games filling in for Nic Moore, Linky is the Warsaw 6th man providing instant offense off the bench. Linky scored a season high 11 points. Sophomore reserve Jalen Roscoe scored 11 points in 14 minutes of action for the Tigers.

Junior Joey Sparkman had a chance to push the Tigers to the century mark (100 points) as his 3 point attempt fell just short as time expired.

Final Score: Warsaw 97 - Wawasee 82

Complete Scoring for Warsaw:

Justin Clemens - 28, Nic Moore - 17, Jordyn Coon - 13, Lucas Grose - 12, Zack Linky - 11, Jalen Roscoe - 11, Andy Conrad - 4, Christopher O'Hara - 1

Warsaw has rattled off 3 consecutive wins to improve to 5-1 (1-0 NLC) on the season. The Tigers have a twelve day break before hosting the Tiger Holiday Hoops Tourney 12/30 at the Tiger Den. The first game begins at Noon. Warsaw will then travel to Purdue University 1/2/2010 to play in the Super Hoops Classic at Mackey Arena. Warsaw play Noblesville in the 7:15pm game.

All of us at TigerSportsNation.com wish the Tiger players, coaches, and fans a very Merry Christmas! Great win Boys!

Posted In: Boy's Sports > Basketball