FORT WAYNE – “Don’t think, just throw.”
– Crash Davis to ‘Nuke’
LaLoosh in “Bull Durham”
It was kind of like that when IPFW junior guard Frank Gaines cradled the basketball on the left side of the floor with less than two minutes remaining and the Mastodons hanging on to a one-point lead.
When the 6-foot-4 junior buried a three-point shot with 1:47 remaining to give IPFW a four-point lead, it also gave the Mastodons the impetus and the cushion to claim an 85-76 victory over Valparaiso at the Coliseum. The Crusaders were four days removed from an overtime win over NCAA runner-up Butler.
“I kind of thought I was open, and I just let it go,” said Gaines, the sixth-leading scorer in Division I, who shredded the Crusaders for 24 points.
“I wasn’t thinking about the score part – that we were up by one,” Gaines said. “I didn’t know how much we were up, to be honest. I think if I would’ve second-guessed it, I probably would’ve missed it.”
But this would be a night in which the Mastodons (4-3) rarely missed, shooting 60 percent from the floor (31 of 51).
It would be a night in which they trailed just once – 56-55 with 13:57 remaining – even though the Mastodons owned a 28-14 lead midway through the first half.
“I think it’s critical, as a coach, when things are going hectic around you, your team’s going to look to you and your reactions, so in terms of panic inside, yeah, we’re really thinking, ‘How do we get a good basket and how do we (get a) stop?’ ” IPFW coach Tony Jasick said.
“But in terms of external emotions, I really try to keep it in check because I do think your team feeds off it, and if they do see you panicking over on the sidelines, I think that can lead to them being a little bit uncomfortable.”
Cutting it close? Yes. Panic? Not really.
Valparaiso (6-3), which has lost to IPFW three times in the past four years, pressed the issue, attacked the rim and cut into a couple five-point deficits, coming within 75-74 on Jay Harris’ close-range basket with 2:09 left.
That’s when Gaines stepped up, first with the three-pointer, and then after another Valparaiso basket that made the score 78-76, on a conventional three-point play to put the Mastodons ahead 81-76 with 1:07 left.
“As the game went on, our team somehow continues to have pretty darn good poise,” Jasick said.
“Late in games and tough situations, we seem to always come through, and if we don’t make a shot, we get a great look at it. Obviously I’m pretty pleased with our team.”
Trey McCorkle added 16 points, including two free throws with 51.7 seconds left that put IPFW up 83-76.
John Peckinpaugh had eight early points and finished with 13. And freshman point guard Jonny Marlin had 10 points and seven assists.
“It was a big win,” McCorkle said. “One of the biggest.”
