By RICK SPRUNGER
FORT WAYNE — Norwell put on an offensive clinic in Tuesday night.
The Knights (3-1), playing an almost flawless first half, piled up a 50-23 lead at the intermission and coasted to a surprisingly one-sided 73-47 rout of Bishop Dwenger.
“We played really well,” said a pleased Norwell coach Mike McBride. “We moved the ball well, we defended well, we shot well. Of course, we were getting some awfully good shots.”
Norwell hit seven of its first eight shots and 12 of its first 14.
Included in those first 12 bullseyes were eight three-pointers by five different players.
Behind all that long-range marksmanship, Norwell sped away from the Saints right from the get-go.
With the Knights on top, 15-11, McBride’s charges lit off on a 15-2 run for a 30-13 spread in the first minute of the second quarter.
That streak included three-pointers by Lleyton Bailey, Cohen Bailey, Jake Parker, and Adam McBride.
Then, with the score at 40-20, the Knights ran off another 10-0 spurt for a 50-20 edge before a three-pointer by Dwenger’s Ethan Roy made it 50-23 at halftime.
Leading the way for Norwell was Luke McBride, who finished with game-highs of 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Interestingly, he scored just one of Norwell’s first 43 points.
But he was right in the thick of the offense.
“We really emphasized attacking the basket and playing the game in the paint,” explained the elder McBride. “Luke did a really nice job of penetrating and driving to the basket, collapsing the defense, and getting other guys open.
“They put one of their big kids on Jake Parker,” he continued, referencing Dwenger’s two 6-8 starters, Caleb Lehrman and Preston Ross. “But when we drove the lane, he had to help out on the inside, and that left Jake open.”
Parker hit three three-pointers in that first quarter Norwell break-out, added a fourth later in the game, and finished with 15 points.
Because of Dwenger’s considerable size advantage, the Saints were able to control the boards — for a while.
“In the first four or five possessions, they were getting a lot of offensive rebounds,” said McBride.
“But we eventually got that cleaned up. And once we did, we were able to create some transition opportunities.”
The Knights ended up with a 29-28 edge on the glass for the game.
Norwell shot a white-hot 18-for-27 (.667) from the field in the first half, including a 9-for-14 effort from three-point range while committing just four turnovers.
Cohen Bailey and Brody Bolyn joined McBride and Parker in double figures with 10 points each.
Dwenger got 13 points from Roy and 12 from Lehrman.
The Saints were 16-for-45 from the floor for a .356 shooting percentage.
Dwenger took the reserve contest 58-31.
Norwell got 15 points from Brady Smith and 11 from Caiden Petrie.
Noah Turk and Ryne Thornton added two points apiece, and Eli Randol one for the Knights.
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NORWELL 73, FORT WAYNE DWENGER 47
at Dwenger High School
NORWELL (3-1): Jake Parker 5-9 1-1 15, Cohen Bailey 4-10 0-0 10, Lleyton Bailey 2-7 0-0 6, 2-7 0-0 6, Luke McBride 6-11 9-11 21, Brody Bolyn 5-7 0-0 10, Gavin Hoeppner 2-5 0-1 6, Adam McBride 2-2 0-0 5, Cade Shelton 0-0 0-0 0. TOTAL: 26-51 10-13 73.
BISHOP DWENGER (0-1): Ethan Roy 4-12 3-5 13, Sam Campbell 2-5 2-2 6, Caleb Lehrman 6-9 0-0 12, Camren Quinlan 2-5 2-2 7, Preston Ross 2-6 3-4 7, Stellan Ruston 0-2 0-0 0, Aslan Nolan 0-1 0-0 0, Luke Jacquay 0-2 0-0 0, Ryan Groves 0-1 0-0 0, Charlie Olson 0-2 2-2 2, Harrison Parent 0-0 0-0 0, Joe Schenkel 0-0 0-0 0. TOTAL: 16-45 12-15 47.
Norwell 28 22 11 12 — 73
Dwenger 13 10 8 16 — 47
Three-point shooting-Norwell 11-25 (Parker 4-8, C. Bailey 2-5, L. Bailey 2-6, Bolyn 0-1, A. McBride 1-1), Dwenger 3-18 (Roy 2-7, Campbell 0-2, Quinlan 1-3, Ross 0-1, Ruston 0-2, Jacquay 0-1, Groves 0-1, Olson 0-1). Rebounds-Norwell 29 (L. McBride 14), Dwenger 28 (Lehrman 6, Ross 6). Turnovers-Norwell 8, Dwenger 14. Personal fouls-Norwell 14, Dwenger 17. Fouled out-None. Technical fouls-None.
Junior Varsity: Dwenger 58, Norwell 31.
