NEW PARIS — National Trail’s boys’ basketball team got off to a fast start against Dixie on Friday, Dec. 29. The Blazers took an early lead and went on to a 55-43 win.
NT opened the game with intensity and got the offense on track right away. They led 16-4 by the end of the first quarter and extended the lead to 21-4 in the opening minutes of the second period.
Dixie was unable to defend the Blazers’ perimeter shooting in the early going as freshman Cameron Harrison connected on three, 3-point shots to give the Blazers momentum.
“We came out of the gate playing with great intensity on the defensive end and coupled that with good ball movement and shot selection on the offensive side. Thought we played extremely well for a quarter and a half.” NT coach Mike Harrison said.
NT went into the halftime locker room ahead 34-16. In the second half, Dixie was able to keep the game more competitive, but the Blazers maintained their double-digit lead through most of the game.
“I wish we had been able to maintain that level at both ends longer, but at the end of the day our three main objectives were, we wanted to move the ball well offensively, control the defensive glass, and limit number 21’s looks — and we did all three of those things pretty well.”
Travis Hunt led the team with 22 points and added three assists. Cameron Harrison had 15 points. Zach Woodall contributed 5 assists and 8 rebounds. Adam Eyler led a solid defensive effort with 4 steals and 3 deflections.
National Trail (6-3) returns to Cross County Conference action on Friday, Jan. 5, at Miami East. They were scheduled to begin the week with a trip to Seton Catholic (Richmond, Ind.) on Tuesday, Jan. 2.
