John A. Logan stops Warrior win streak

TreVon Smith muscles inside for a shot against Shawnee.
TreVon Smith muscles inside for a shot against Shawnee.

Carterville, Ill. – Wabash Valley's five-game winning streak came to an emphatic end on Thursday night.

Fourth-ranked John A. Logan defeated the Warriors, 92-64, in a Great Rivers Athletic Conference game. The Vols, 6-1 overall, now have the only undefeated league mark at 4-0.

Wabash Valley (5-2, 1-1 in GRAC play) had been idle for 15 days, since defeating Lewis & Clark, 86-67, back on Feb. 3.

That long layoff showed, said Warrior coach Mike Carpenter.

"We looked like we hadn't played a game in 15 days," he said.

The Logan lead grew to as much as 31 points, 69-38, with 12 minutes left, after a 16-0 run permeated by four three-point plays – three from beyond the arc line, the other on an inside move which led to an and-1 free throw.

"We're going to be fine, but we have to do a better job of playing together," Carpenter said.

A basket by the Warriors' Issac Stanback with a little more than 14 minutes to go in the first half tied the game at 9-9. Logan took it from there, scoring the game's next 11 points, to take control.

By halftime it was 44-30, and the Vols doubled that 14-point cushion in the second half to account for the final margin.

The Vols blistered the nets, shooting 62.1% on 36-of-58 accuracy. They banged in 12 of 25 3-point attempts for 48% from the arc.

Wabash had trouble contending with Logan's sophomore center, 7-foot-3 Jamarion Sharp. He had 12 points but added seven blocked shots on defense.

Leading the way for Wabash Valley was guard TreVon Smith, who hit three 3-balls in his game-high 19-pooint performance. The only Warrior in double figures was Deshaun Nettles with 10 points.

Logan had six players hit doubles, with Cam Alford's 18 points topping the winners.

WVC has just two days to bounce back. They visit "The Dungeon" on Saturday for a GRAC dual at Olney Central (5-2, 1-1). The tipoff is slated for 3 p.m.