No quit in Quimari
With injured ankle, Peterson scores 1,000th career point, leads West Side to OT win vs. Chesterton
West Side’s Quimari Peterson enjoyed a special Friday night against Chesterton after missing a game with an injured left ankle.
The senior guard scored the only three points in overtime after earlier eclipsing 1,000 for his career as West Side edged the visiting Trojans 43-40 in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Wearing a brace on his ankle, Peterson felt good for the Cougars (17-4), who are ranked No. 13 in the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association’s state poll and No. 9 in Class 4A in the poll by The Associated Press. Peterson sat out the team’s loss to Andrean on Wednesday. He had twisted his ankle in practice when he landed on a teammate’s foot grabbing a rebound.
Peterson snapped a 40-40 tie by hitting the front end of a one-andone with 42.1 seconds left in overtime. After West Side senior forward Parion Roberson blocked a shot and Chesterton (16-6) missed a free throw with 27.9 seconds left, Peterson drove for a basket to make it 43-40. Chesterton missed a 3-point shot with three seconds remaining.
“We had to be patient,” Peterson said. “I just wanted to help my team win.”
Peterson finished with 12 points. The game was stopped with 6:17 left in the first quarter after he scored to reach 1,000 points for his career. Coach Chris Buggs presented him with a ball to recognize the achievement.
“It’s a blessing to be able to get that many points,” Peterson said. “I’m thankful for it. But I just wanted to win.”
That sort of approach didn’t surprise Buggs.
“I’m so proud of him,” Buggs said. “I’ve been coaching him since seventh grade. I’m so proud to coach a player like that. I’ve been around him so long. He has a great attitude, and he’s a great leader.
“I’m just proud of all of our seniors. It’s a good closeout. Give credit to Chesterton. They’re well-coached and well-disciplined. I’m just really excited for the seniors, who really rejuvenated the program. This caps off their regular season.”
In a close game throughout, junior forward Jalen Washington hit a 3-pointer with 1:59 left in the fourth quarter to give West Side a 38-35 lead.
After senior forward Tyler VanderWoude and Washington exchanged two free throws each, Chesterton junior guard Travis Grayson nailed a 3-pointer to tie the score at 40-40 with 40 seconds remaining.
Washington led West Side with 13 points. Grayson scored a gamehigh 21 for Chesterton.
“He’s a competitive kid who works hard,” Chesterton coach Marc Urban said of Grayson. “He’s tough on himself. But he’s a fighter, and he’s going to keep fighting.”
The Cougars played without Chrishawn Christmas. The senior guard/forward was “banged up,” according to Buggs, but should return for the 4A West Side Sectional opener against Merrillville on Wednesday.
Buggs also is hopeful that Mason Nicholson, who has been sidelined since Jan. 5 with a fractured right foot, would return for the postseason. The 6-foot-9 senior center has been cleared to practice.
“We’re just trying to get fully healthy,” Buggs said. “I was super excited for the grind-it-out game. That type of game gets us ready for the playoffs. I like the fact we were in a dogfight and we persevered and we didn’t break down and didn’t have a lot of lapses.”
Chesterton was missing Charlie Eaton. Urban said he hoped the senior guard, who sprained his ankle against Hammond on Feb. 20, would be back for the 4A Chesterton Sectional opener against Valparaiso on Tuesday.
“We played well at times,” Urban said. “We had some mistakes throughout the game that made a difference at the end. But these guys are fighting. They fought their tail off. It’s turn the page and get on Valpo right now.”