The tentative game in the first quarter proved costly in Northview’s inaugural loss to Terre Haute North in the First Financial Wabash Valley Classic on Monday. On Day 2 against Casey, the Knights were aggressive from minute one – and the results were exactly what they were hoping for.

Northview opened with a 14-2 run and only accelerated from there, taking 22 points from Drew Cook and 13 from Braden Allen to open the game in the first 16 minutes. The Knights led at halftime at 41 and the rest of the competition was academic when Northview drove to a 70:40 win over Casey in the consolation group of the classic on Tuesday morning.

“We worked a lot with our minds [after Monday]“Said Northview coach Michael Byrum. “First of all, Terre Haute North is a very good team and they are in the rankings for a reason, but we definitely didn’t show up [Monday] Tomorrow.

“What we talked about [Monday] In the afternoons and evenings, some things set the tone, played our game and were not ordinary, but extraordinary. “

The Knights (4-3) were exceptional from the first seconds on Tuesday, what looked like a strong Casey defense on Monday seemed to be lost in the woods. The Warriors (4-8) competed against Parke Heritage in their inaugural competition, but when their early shots missed against Northview Monday’s staunch defense began to crumble.

“We missed some early shots and it kind of got through our heads,” said Casey coach Tom Brannan. “We have to get mentally stronger and that has happened all year round. If you miss a shot and then you don’t rotate on defense, don’t box on rebound and then your ball handling suffers, it’s like a snowball. That happened to us today.

The snowball turned into an avalanche because the knights quickly gained confidence when they saw they could handle what Casey threw at them. Freed from the pressure to beat North, the Knights focused on getting good shots and grabbing rebounds when they missed.

“Confidence was the big thing,” said Cook. “I think we’re putting too much pressure on ourselves [Monday] against a higher class team and a really good defense like North. In that game, I had confidence and my entire team trusted me, and that was the greatest for [Tuesday]. “

The only one keeping Cook up all day was Byrum, who pulled his starters off the floor at the end of the third quarter with the game well in hand and a consolation semi-final with Shakamak against the Knights on Wednesday. Even then, the Northview starters gave no indication that the job was done, as the loudest cheers of the morning came as Reserve Hunter Johnson drilled a 3-pointer to get the Knights to 70 points.

“We wanted to make a statement for [Wednesday]”Said Koch. “We know we are a good team, we just have to unleash it. As Coach said, we have to come out full of energy and we didn’t do that on Monday, that’s why we lost. “

Now it’s Casey and Brannan who take on hosts South at 10am, hoping to save some three days in the Classic. The Warriors found their offense enough to beat the Knights 23:12 in the second half, which gave Brannan hope that Tuesday could become a stepping stone for Casey-Westfield.

“We took steps forward, but we took a big step back in this game,” said Brannan. “This is a transformative moment for us; either we can change and get better and make it a transformative moment, or it will be a long year. I hope it will be that moment when we look back in February and we’re glad it happened because it made us a stronger team. “