Jimtown High School

Jimmies romp over Knox in important conference clash By Red Williams Freelance Sportswriter ELKHART - Some might call it “pay-back.” But this scribe may be the only one who had thoughts of retribution. Jimtown High School’s basketball Jimmies nearly doubled the score Friday night (1.30.26) in pounding visiting Knox, 82-45, before a large crowd at Jerry Cook Gym. (The Redskins thoroughly thrashed Jimtown last fall on the gridiron, and one of their heroes, Myles McLaughlin, also plays a mean game on the basketball court.) Tre Baldwin and Will Spurgeon each had double-doubles to spark the Boys of Baugo in this dominating win. Jimtown now stands at 11-4 overall with a perfect 4-0 slate in the Indiana Northern State Conference. Only Bremen stands in the way with an engagement Feb. 13 at the Lions’ den. The Redskins are 5-8 and 0-3, respectively. But Ryan Varga isn’t thinking about that; he’s got three other teams to hurdle in the meantime, one of them being state-ranked Northridge. “We’re getting there,” Varga said, “but I’ve warned them they can’t be content. I thought we moved the ball well and spread out their defense, so we could utilize our catch-and-shoot game.” Once again, the Jimmies were hitting well from the three-point range, nailing 50 percent (13-for-26). They broke open a close game (27-22 at the half with Jimtown on top) with an onslaught that defied belief, scoring 36 points in the third period alone. They connected for seven treys in that quarter and four more in the final stanza, eventually building an 83-43 lead. “We picked up our intensity in the second half,” Varga said, “and I was happy with the response.” Knox mentor Jason Breden related, “It was a tale of two halves, just behind by five at the half. Then they started knocking down the threes, and we couldn’t keep up.” Varga also applauded the spectators: “The crowd support and the pep band were beautiful. I’m proud of the way the Jimtown community is supporting our guys.” (Kathy Baughman, band director, opened up the opportunity for the alumni to join them, and 25 showed up.) Baldwin scored a dozen points and terrorized the boards with 10 rebounds, and Spurgeon cashed in with 10 points and 11 assists. Jackson Woolwine and Zander Whitaker led the Jimmies in scoring with 20 apiece, and Dom Fey added 14. Woolwine led the three-point parade with 6-of-10. McLaughlin topped all scorers with 23. The Jimmies also out-rebounded Knox to the tune of 35-21. Score by quarters: Knox 11 11 16 7 45 Jimtown 11 16 36 21 84