Article and Photos by T Ray Henry
On Monday, December 22nd, the Marshall High School boys basketball team traveled to Paris High School to play the Tigers in a Little Illini Conference doubleheader inside Room N102 at Paris High School. Marshall came into the contest with a record of 2-4, while Paris came in with a record of 4-5.
As the early season progressed during the last month, the Lions have been in search of offensive production to augment leading scorers Payton McGuire and Garrett Pugh, who have accounted for over 80% of Marshall's total points through the first 6 games. Finding a third and fourth option is important in the event opponents throw defenses at the Lions designed to shut down McGuire and Pugh. Where that production would come from was still an unanswered commodity.
In the varsity game versus Paris, the Lions were facing a squad determined they would not allow McGuire and Pugh to beat them by themselves, so Marshall needed scoring to come from other contributors. During this contest, with the Tigers giving unorthodox defensive looks, the Lions turned to Ghidorah, a tall trio consisting of senior Bryce Griguhn, sophomore Zach Jones, and freshman Tommy Sheehy, who at different times dominated their defenders in the paint to score a combined 22 points. Instead of the Lions looking for a third option, they found a combination that served the same purpose, and going forward in the season this may be the key that unlocks success.
Payton McGuire led all scorers with 23 points as Paris sent multiple defenders at him from all directions, while Garrett Pugh added 10 points in Marshall’s 59-51 win over Paris, McGuire and Pugh also led the Lions with 9 rebounds apiece. Liam Keim and Tucker Osborn each had two points while playing stout defense against the Tigers.
In the early stages of the game, Marshall jumped out to a 7-2 lead on a free throw by Payton McGuire and inside buckets by Garrett Pugh and Bryce Griguhn. Paris then scored 6 straight points to take an 8-7 lead after one quarter of play.
The Tigers scored the first four points of the second quarter to take a 12-7 lead before Marshall’s Payton McGuire sank a free throw and Zach Jones scored on a strong inside move to get the Lions within 2 at 12-10 with 5:45 remaining in the quarter. After Paris scored to go ahead by 4, Zach Jones scored again when he took a pass down low from Tucker Osborn, and Jones beat his man to the rim to make it 14-12. The Tigers responded with a bucket to lead 16-12, but Marshall came up the floor and worked the ball to Payton McGuire along the right wing. McGuire put up a 22-footer that fell through the hoop as he was fouled. After he sank the free throw for the four-point play, the game was all tied up at 16 with 4 ½ to go until halftime.
Paris went up by three at 19-16 before the Lions’ Payton McGuire swished a three-pointer from the top of the key to tie the game at 19. Another nice play where Tucker Osborn passed the ball down on the right side to Liam Keim, who turned and passed the ball over to the left block to Garrett Pugh, and Pugh went up between two Paris defenders to score gave the Lions 21, but Paris closed out the half on a 6-0 run to take a 27-21 lead at the break.
A free throw by Marcus Hutchings for Paris made the score 28-23 early before Marshall’s Bryce Griguhn took a pass from Tucker Osborn at the right block and went up and scored to bring the Lions within 3 with the score 28-25. A bucket by Paris’ Dawson Rogers gave the Tigers a 30-23 lead, and the Lions responded when Tucker Osborn followed his own shot from the left baseline, grabbed the rebound, and passed the ball to Liam Keim at the right block. Keim went up and scored to make it 30-25. With 4:34 to go in the third, Marshall’s Payton McGuire drained a three-pointer from the left wing to reduce the Paris lead to two with the score 30-28.
After the Lions got a stop on defense on the Tigers next possession, Marshall’s Liam Keim inbounded the ball to Payton McGuire on the left baseline, and McGuire drilled a three-pointer for the Lions to take a 31-30 lead, their first lead since early in the first quarter. Paris responded by scoring six straight to lead 36-31, but Marshall came right back with two free throws by Garrett Pugh and a steal and score by Payton McGuire to get within one point with Paris clinging to a 36-35 lead. The Tigers got a bucket from Carter Eastham to take a 38-35 advantage, but back-to-back buckets by Marshall’s Zach Jones and Tommy Sheehy gave the Lions a 39-38 lead as the clock ticked down under a minute to go in the third. After a Paris turnover, Marshall came back down the floor to work for a final shot. Payton McGuire drove down the right side and drew the Paris defense to him as he dished the ball to Zach Jones on the left side of the lane. Jones caught the ball and floated across the lane as he dropped in a shot to give Marshall a 41-38 lead after three quarters of play.
After a couple empty trips up and down the floor, a three-pointer by Paris’ Braylen Mills tied the game at 41 with 6:45 left on the clock. Payton McGuire dribble drove to the right elbow where he stopped and popped in a 12-footer to give Marshall a 43-41 lead. After Paris tied it up at 43, Marshall’s Payton McGuire threaded a pass to Bryce Griguhn at the left block, and Griguhn banked home the shot to give Marshall a two-point lead at 45-43. After the Lions got a stop on defense, they came back into the offensive end as Paris knocked the ball out of bounds on the baseline. Liam Keim then inbounded the ball to Tommy Sheehy on the left side. Sheehy curled around his man into the lane and dropped a baby hook through the hoop to give Marshall a 47-43 lead with 3:45 to go on the clock.
The Lions’ defense buckled down and got another stop. In transition, Tommy Sheehy broke away and took a ¾ length pass for a score, then on the next possession for Paris, Payton McGuire stole the ball and went all the way to score to break the game open with 1:51 to go as Marshall took a 51-43 lead. After another big stop on defense, the Lions worked the ball to Tommy Sheehy along the left baseline, and Sheehy swished a 15-foot jumper to put the Lions up by 10 with the score 53-43 with 1:17 to go. From that point on, Paris scored a couple three-point plays as the Tigers decided to send Marshall to the free throw line the rest of the way. Tucker Osborn, Payton McGuire, and Garrett Pugh all hit free throws down the stretch, and when the final buzzer sounded, Marshall came away with a 59-51 win over Paris. With the win, Marshall moves to 2-1 in conference play.
In the junior varsity game, the junior Lions played Paris even for three quarters before generating just five points as a team in the final stanza in a loss to the Tigers. Zach Jones led the junior varsity squad with 17 points. Reed Ramey had 8 points, while Cage Stuckey and Ethan Sumner each finished with 6 points. Caden O’Rourke had 3 points, Brady Landrus had 2 points, and Luke Brodie finished with 1 point.
The Lions (3-4) play their next game in the Terre Haute First Financial Tournament at Terre Haute South Vigo High School on Friday, December 26th, where the Lions are scheduled to take on the Sullivan (IN) High School Golden Arrows in the nightcap of Day 1 at the tournament. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 PM Central Time. Tickets will be available at the door.
Tucker Osborn pulls down the rebound
Bryce Griguhn goes up for 2 of his 6 points
Garrett Pugh goes up strong for 2 of his 10 points
Payton McGuire led the Lions with 23 points and 9 rebounds