Noll rallies, knocks off Niners
Warriors erase 12-point deficit, win rivalry game on late layup by Crisler
MERRILLVILLE — Sectional play across the state may not begin until next week, but it was certainly a playoff atmosphere as Bishop Noll visited Andrean in a rivalry game to close the regular season.
Andrean saw a 12-point halftime lead slip away as the Warriors rallied in the second half for a 50-48 victory in front of a sellout crowd.
“It was defense that got us back in the game,” Bishop Noll coach Joshua Belluomini said. “In the first half, we didn’t rotate well. In the second half, we were able to dictate what they did on offense because of it.”
Larry Crisler’s layup with 22 seconds remaining snapped a 48-48 deadlock and accounted for the difference in the game.
Following Crisler’s basket, Andrean had one final chance with 15 second remaining, but Ramon Guerrero misfired on a layup attempt. A missed Bishop Noll free throw on the front end of a oneand-one with 2.7 seconds remaining gave the 59ers time for one last heave, but Guerrero’s 3-point effort deflected off the backboard, hit the rim and fell out.
“We have a defense where we switch everything and that’s what we ended up doing on the final play,” Belluomini said. “I wished we would have closed out a little bit better to be honest with you. I thought it was a little too open for a kid whose got a really nice stroke, but it was a deep 3.”
Crisler led all scorers with 17 points, while Ben Davidson and Guerrero each turned in 13 for the 59ers.
Bishop Noll (18-3) had lost to Andrean (10-9) each of the last two years.
“This is great for our whole community, and you saw how they came out and supported us today,” Belluomini said.
The Warriors are focused on a much bigger goal with sectional play set to start next week against Lake Station.
“I think part of why we struggled in the first half was that we’ve just been thinking so much about the next phase of everything,” Belluomini said. “We want to do something more special than beat our rival.”