When Doug Ogle said the Merrillville Pirates were long and athletic, he was not exaggerating! After the Munster Mustangs defeated SB Washington 48-42 in game one, the Merrillville Pirates took the floor before the Warsaw Tigers for game two. The Pirates had a whopping seven players taller than 6'3" and man did they look huge.

The Pirates came into this game with a record of 20-3 and fresh off a sectional victory over rival Valparaiso. The Warsaw Tigers sported a 20-2 record after a sectional win against the Elkhart Memorial Chargers.

Tiger Nation was out in FULL FORCE to support the Tigers. For every one Merrillville fan Warsaw had five loyal supporters wearing orange and black in the Michigan City gymnasium.

Merrillville controlled the tip. The Tigers drew first blood. Lucas Grose made 1 of 2 free throws to give Warsaw the early lead. The Pirates rattled off the next four.

The Tigers responded with a 5-0 burst of their own. Nic Moore scored his first basket using a Lucas Grose screen to knock down a 17 foot jumper. Senior Zack Linky then connected on a 3-pointer from the right wing. Warsaw led 6-4 with 4:59 on the clock. Merrillville leading scorer Jeremiah Jones scored the next four points. The last basket on a beautiful alley-oop pass high above the rim. Pirates led 8-6.

Lucas Grose and Justin Clemens connected on baskets for Warsaw. Grose on a nice pass from Linky and Justin on a pick-n-roll with Nic Moore.

Nic Moore closed the first quarter in style. Moore swished a fade-away jump shot at the buzzer over two Pirate defenders. Tiger Nation went absolutely crazy on Nic's basket.

End of Quarter #1: Warsaw 14 - Merrillville 11

Nic Moore scored the first two points of the second quarter. Moore broke free on an inbounds play called by Coach Doug Ogle. Nic was fouled on the play and he made both free throws. Anybody who has followed this team knows that the Tigers execute their inbounds plays to perfection. Coach Ogle's calls from the bench certainly give Warsaw an advantage over their opponents.

The Tigers and Pirates traded baskets through the first three minutes of the quarter. The Tigers started to assert themselves over the final minutes of the second period. Leading 20-18 with 4:19 left, Warsaw closed with a 6-2 run fueled by the BIG THREE. Justin Clemens started the scoring with a face up jump shot. Nic Moore scored on two free throws. Lucas Grose capped off the spurt with two free throws of his own to give Warsaw a six point halftime lead.

Nic Moore led Warsaw with 8 first half points while Grose scored 7 and Clemens pitched in 6.

End of First Half: Warsaw 26 - Merrillville 20

Warsaw had the opportunity to blow this game wide open to begin the third quarter. After one free throw each by Grose and Conrad the Tigers led 28-20 with 5:23 to go. Zack Linky shot a 3-pointer that tracked toward the net the whole way. Tiger fans rose to their feet with their arms held in the air in the form of a "touchdown" in anticipation of a made three pointer. Linky's shot rimmed out. Had it went down the Tigers would have led 31-20.

Instead Pirate guard Brandon Clark dribbled down the court to convert a three point shot for Merrillville. Warsaw led 28-23 with 3:58 left in the 3rd. The triple by Clark was Merrillville's first points of the second half.

Justin Clemens scored the next basket on an assist from Nic Moore. Clemens then played amazing defense. Clemens stood his ground on a drive by Jeremiah Jones to draw a huge charging call. It was the third charge Justin drew in the game. None bigger than this. With Warsaw leading 32-26 at the 3:15 mark, Merrillville finished the quarter on a 10-5 run. Rico Spikes scored 7 of the 10 points for the Pirates. Spikes is considered the defensive specialist for his team. On this day he was just the opposite. He was an offensive force.

Merrillville outscored Warsaw 17-10 in the frame.

End of Third Quarter: Merrillville 37 - Warsaw 36

The final eight minutes would determine who would face Munster in the Regional final. The two teams would trade baskets and free throws to start the quarter. At the 6:00 mark Warsaw led 42-41.

Nic Moore began his assault on the Pirates.

Moore converted an old fashioned three point play. He made a double-clutch hanging lay-up and drew a foul. Tiger Nation went ballistic!! What a shot - what a time to do it!! Nic's three point play gave Warsaw a 45-41 lead with 5:25 to go. Lucas Grose followed Moore's heroics with two big free throws. Warsaw 47-Merrillville 41.

The Pirates would close the gap to five on a free throw from Jeremiah Jones. Warsaw 50-Merrillville 45.

The Tigers would not allow Merrillville to get any closer in this game. Nic Moore was continually fouled in a desperation attempt by the Pirates to the basketball back. Moore drained 14 out of 15 free throws in the second half to secure the win for the #6 Warsaw Tigers. Moore finished the game with 28 points. Eighteen of the 28 came on free throws as Nic made 90% (18-20) for the contest. Nic continually proved why his coach is certain he is a Mr. Basketball choice for 2011. He made big play after big play on this big stage.

Final Score: Warsaw 64 - Merrillville 56

The victory gives the Tigers the right to play for the Regional Championship against Munster at 7:30 CST tonight. The clash between the #4 Mustangs and the #6 Tigers is certain to be a fantastic finale to this Michigan City regional action.

Tiger Nation will be in full force as Warsaw tries to advance to the semi-state and the Final Four in the prestigious 2010 IHSAA tournament.

Go Tigers!

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Posted In: Boy's Sports > Basketball

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