Nothing in baseball can match an ace pitcher, not even the weight of history.
COLUMBIA CITY – A rejuvenated Homestead boys basketball team bounced back in the second half to clinch the outright NHC title and remain undefeated with a 65-55 win against Columbia City on Tuesday.
The Class 4A No. 2 Spartans (19-0, 7-0 NHC) wrapped up their second straight conference championship by outscoring the Eagles 36-25 in the second half.
Homestead already had at least a share of the NHC championship with a 75-65 win over Norwell last Thursday. The Spartans beat their three toughest league foes in order – New Haven, Norwell and Columbia City – to finish off their league schedule to win the title.
The Spartans remained one of only two unbeaten teams in the state along with 3A No. 1 Greensburg (18-0).
“We want to keep rolling and keep it going,” Homestead senior guard Daymon Osborn said. “As a goal we have met so far is being conference champions, and we want to take that home and celebrate for the next couple of days, work hard in practice and get ready for the next ‘W.’
“(The conference title) is important to us. We worked hard to get where we are at, and we battled and we are where we want to be right now.”
Columbia City, which had lost to Homestead 63-45 at the Carroll Shootout on Dec. 30, held a 30-29 halftime lead. But the Spartans opened the third quarter on a 17-5 run to grab an advantage they never let go.
“There was a little bit less energy in the first half, and we came out in the second half and the energy was there,” Osborn said. “We needed that. We had an important run in the third quarter, and we were able to find a way to put the ball in the bucket.”
Nick Gamble led Homestead with 18 points, while Zach Terrell had 17 points and eight rebounds. Osborn and Kyle Galovich each added nine points.
“Hopefully we can keep this thing rolling because it has been a pretty fun year so far,” Homestead coach Chris Johnson said. “Everyone on this team knows their role, and everyone is doing their role. They are doing what they are supposed to do, and that’s what is making this an enjoyable year.”
Drew Benedict led the Eagles with 27 points.
“We knew it was going to be a different game,” Johnson said. “We knew it was going to be a battle, but hopefully this is going to make us a tougher team.”
