COLUMBUS — Columbus East pushed and pulled its way within two points of Shelbyville Tuesday night at the Orange Pit, but a Mar Nicholson offensive rebound and score and four made free throws from Cole Schene and Luke Brinkman sealed the Golden Bears’ 59-53 victory.

Nicholson finished with 19 points, seven rebounds and two blocks while fellow sophomore Caden Claxton had 17 points, three rebounds and two assists to improve Shelbyville to 9-4.

“We knew Columbus East was going to be very physical,” said Shelbyville head coach John Hartnett. “The (referees) tightened up on it early then kind of let us play a little bit more in the second half. We’ve got to get tougher in those situations. We have to be tough and take care of the ball and not panic when we get pressured in these late quarters.”

Keaton Lawson, also a sophomore, topped Columbus East (3-7) with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Shelbyville collected its third-straight win with a strong first half performance that included Damon Badgley sinking a trio of 3-pointers. After a slow start to the season, the junior has hit 14 of his last 24 3-point attempts (58%).

Claxton and Badgley combined for 11 first-quarter points that helped Shelbyville build a 17-10 lead. Nicholson had six points and three rebounds in the second quarter and the Golden Bears opened up a double-digit lead, 33-22, at halftime.

Lawson (photo below, right) scored nine points in the third quarter in a variety of ways while Shelbyville slowed, making just four field goals and committing four turnovers against a physical Olympians defense.

“(Lawson) is tough as nails and he is a good lefty that can go right and use his right hand well,” said Hartnett.

An Alex Duncan layin with five seconds on the third-quarter clock cut Shelbyville’s lead to 44-41 but Claxton (photo) raced to half court and hit a momentum-squashing 3 to set the lead at six going to the final quarter.

Three of Nicholson’s four field goals in the final eight minutes came of offensive rebounds. The final one came with 1:40 left when the Olympians had gotten within 53-51.

“(Nicholson) was our key in the fourth quarter getting easy buckets, getting the offensive board and putting it back up,” said Hartnett.

The Olympians could not answer back and Shelbyville spread the floor and forced Columbus East to foul to stop the clock.

Schene, who scored eight points in Shelbyville’s 44-30 junior varsity win, sank a pair of free throws with 19 seconds left to push the lead back to six. Schene finished with four points and five rebounds in the varsity game and Kyle Clouse also contributed off the bench with two points, two rebounds and a blocked shot.

“We practice hard and it’s competitive every single day,” said Hartnett. “Everybody has to be ready for their shot. Tonight, Kyle Clouse was ready for his shot.”

Shelbyville’s junior varsity also improved to 9-4. Gavin Reed led the Golden Bears with 15 points.

The Golden Bears seek their fourth-straight win Saturday night against Pendleton Heights (6-7, 0-1 Hoosier Heritage Conference) at Garrett Gymnasium.

Notes: Former Shelbyville assistant coach and Triton Central head coach Perry Nash is in his first season as head coach at Columbus East. Another former Shelbyville assistant coach, Al Anderson, is on the Olympians coaching staff as is former Golden Bear Brock Blackwell. … Indiana Basketball Coaches Association Associate Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer Tom Beach was in attendance Tuesday. Beach was Shelbyville’s head coach for four seasons from 2010-2013 and is the father-in-law of Nash. … The Golden Bears are now 1-2 this season against potential Sectional 14 opponents. The sectional, which will be held at East Central, features Whiteland (9-5), Franklin (10-2), Columbus East, Shelbyville, Columbus North (3-6) and East Central (5-7). The Golden Bears are at East Central Feb. 17. Former Shelbyville assistant coach Tyler Thiesing is now the head coach at East Central.

Steve Bush photos

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