By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Driven by desperation and desire, fearless under intense pressure, Bedford North Lawrence senior Driven Axsom stood at the loneliest place on earth. Even in the midst of bedlam, with his team’s fate in his hands, there’s nothing that reveals a solitary figure’s toughness under fire like the foul line in the final seconds.
The scene is a dream. With 3.2 seconds left, game tied. One shot to win. And Axsom had just missed his last free throw quite badly, clanking wide left. But the more important next one, as BNL held its collective breath while everyone in Floyd Central green was screaming until they turned blue, was perfectly pure.
Axsom’s clutch moment, and Floyd’s last miss of a clean look that would have shattered the Stars into a million pieces of heartbreak, powered BNL to a tense 46-45 triumph over the hard-luck Highlanders on Thursday night. Dax Short scored 14 points, one of three Stars in double figures, as BNL recorded its first Hoosier Hills Conference win of the season.
Nothing in this league comes easy. BNL owned the lead for the entire second half, surrendered a deadlocking basket off an inbound set to force the 45-45 stalemate, then borrowed a specialty-situation play from a coaching clinic to set up Axsom for the win.
Forced to go the length of the court with 3.2 seconds left, Short was responsible for triggering the inbound pass. He scurried to his right along the baseline, as he’s allowed following a made basket, and Floyd’s Gavin Scheich followed him while guarding the passer. Scheich never saw Axsom – with good reason, as Scheich is over a foot taller at 6-8 – parked under the basket. The collision sent both sprawling to the court. Axsom was awarded foul shots.
After he made the second, the Highlanders (9-9) came close to scripting their own hero ending. Scheich skied to collect a deep pass from Jaxon Stone and stepped away from defenders to open space. He fired from long range, but it banked harmlessly away, setting off a BNL celebration.
“They missed that last shot, and I’ve never had a moment like that,” Axsom said. “It was awesome. We had a lot of people saying we would lose. We came out and proved them wrong. We needed this win. It felt great.”
BNL, playing defense like doomed men fighting over a last meal, started the fourth quarter with Short’s slippage through traffic for a 3-point play and 40-34 lead. That would be BNL’s final basket. Over the next four minutes, the Highlanders crept closer as Carter McQuigg scored in transition, Jude Vetter faded for a 12-footer in the paint, and Scheich stroked a trey that got Floyd within 44-43 with 19 seconds remaining.
Axsom made a free throw at 17.9, but Floyd came back with Stone’s wing drive to a layup for the equalizer. That led to the late Axsom heroics.
“That’s just life in the HHC,” BNL coach Jackson Ryan said. “It’s a huge win for us, in so many ways. We really challenged our guys defensively. For them to be validated for that effort is what I’m most proud of. The kids deserved it, I’m happy to see them reap the benefits.”
The Highlanders (2-4 in the league) lumbered to a 12-8 lead after the first frame and took their biggest lead at 15-10 on Scheich’s rebound for a 3-point play. The Stars surged back with their best sustained minutes as Short drove the baseline for a bucket, delivered on a post move, then found Easton Moore for a trey. Moore scored again on a lob to the rim, and Short swished a bomb for a 26-22 lead.
The second half was more physical than picturesque. That’s the way BNL is built. Defense was harped on all week.
“For us to win games at this level, it has to be grinding it out, possession by possession,” Ryan said. “We did just enough to finish it.”
Floyd had to battle more adversity. The Highlanders have already lost scoring leader Landon Reed for the season with a knee injury, then starting guard Parker Kays was sidelined against BNL with a back issue. Scheich, who was averaging only 3.6 points per game, was an unexpected solution to that program with a career-high 15 points. Stone totaled 13 points, and McQuigg grabbed 10 rebounds.
The Highlanders lost for the fifth time in a game decided by one possession. They rued seven missed free throws (they were 3 of 10 at one point).
“It starts from the very beginning,” Floyd coach Michael McBride said. “We missed free throws, we missed shots we normally make. Any number of things could have changed.
“It’s a continual theme. We haven’t learned, we haven’t grown, we haven’t figured out how to execute better. Credit to Jackson and BNL, they took it to us.”
BNL didn’t light any fires with its offense, but it had balance. In addition to Short, Gibson Crane and Moore both had 10 points while Parker Kern added 7. Axsom finished with 5 points, all from the line in the final quarter.
”Driven is a gamer,” Ryan said. “The free throw was huge and won us the game, but the most important thing he did was nine deflections. Vetter is one of the best point guards in the HHC, and Driven held him to two points. He did so many big things.”
BNL (5-10, 1-3 in the HHC) will return to action on Tuesday, hosting Scottsburg.
FLOYD CENTRAL HIGHLANDERS (45)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
23 Carter McQuigg, f 0-1 3-7 2-4 10 2 8
24 Ethan Noble, f 0-1 2-5 0-1 3 5 4
22 Jaxon Stone, f 2-4 5-9 1-4 4 3 13
12 Jude Vetter, g 0-1 1-5 0-0 3 0 2
4 Jacob Stewart, g 1-3 1-4 0-0 2 0 3
14 Gavin Scheich 1-4 5-9 4-5 3 4 15
3 Noah Baker 0-1 0-1 0-0 1 2 0
Totals 4-15 17-40 7-14 27 16 45
BEDFORD NL STARS (46)
3s FGs FTs R F Pts
24 Gibson Crane, f 0-0 4-9 2-3 7 4 10
10 Easton Moore, f 1-5 3-9 3-3 3 0 10
5 Dax Short, g 1-3 5-11 3-5 5 1 14
1 Parker Kern, g 1-2 3-7 0-0 2 3 7
2 Driven Axsom, g 0-1 0-1 5-8 2 2 5
40 Ben Conner 0-0 0-1 0-0 0 2 0
12 Dayson Kirby 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 0
11 Jace Nicholson 0-0 0-0 0-0 1 0 0
Totals 3-10 15-38 13-19 22 13 46
Floyd Central 12 14 8 11 – 45
Bedford NL 8 18 11 9 – 46
Turnovers – Floyd Central 14, BNL 12
Field goal percentage – Floyd Central 17-40 (.425); BNL 15-38 (.395)
Free throw percentage – Floyd Central 7-14 (.500); BNL 13-19 (.684)
