Jimtown High School

Jimmies top Bremen in OT By Red Williams Freelance Sportswriter ELKHART – It’s tough when a joke comes back to bite ya. When asked about Bremen’s game plan, head coach Matt Miller said, “Every time 34 (Branden King) gets the ball, pray.” King scored 29 points Friday night (1.31.25) to lead Jimtown’s Jimmies to a 56-54 victory over Bremen before a home crowd estimated at 1,500 in Jerry Cook Court. There are a number of ways to describe the game, which went to overtime: A “cliff-hanger,” a “nail-biter” are two that come to mind. But clichés come short of nailing this exciting league skirmish that “went down to the wire.” There were seven times the score was tied, and the lead changed hands 15 times. Jimtown’s season record blossoms to 9-7 and is undefeated in the Indiana Northern State Conference at 4-0 with one opponent standing in the way (Tippecanoe Valley) of an outright championship in the league’s inaugural season. Bremen is 8-8 and 2-2. It was Senior Night for Jimtown’s winter athletes, and the Jimmies’ Show Choir added a special touch with its rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” “I’m so proud of these guys,” remarked Jimmy head coach Tyler Leighton, “for their toughness, the calm mental attitude and composure. They stayed with our defensive scheme. Their basketball IQ was outstanding.” It was Ed Potter who scored the final two baskets in OT for the Boys of Baugo to provide the winning points. Both baskets came on out-of-bound set plays under the Jimtown basket, as Potter worked his way free for easy lay-ups. “Javen Jackson called an audible when he noticed Bremen had moved into a zone defense,” Leighton related. “Ed was our third option on the play, and found himself open.” King hit a short jumper with 58 seconds left in regulation that sent the game to overtime at 52-52. The Lions fired the first volley in the four-minute OT to take the lead, a lay-in by Riley Tener. The Jimmies tied it with Potter’s first basket at 1:40, and with five ticks left, he hit his second. After a scramble, Miller called time out with 3.8 seconds left. Bremen worked the ball quickly down court on the right side when Jackson deflected a pass out of bounds and the horn sounded. King also collected 15 rebounds for another double-double. He nailed 13 of 23 shots from the floor to led Jimtown to a 46.9 percent shooting effort. Potter finished with nine and Jackson had eight. Chase Devine topped the Lions with 25, Hartley Mitole pitched in 14 and Silas Laidig chipped in with 11. The Jimmies take a week off before a visit to powerful Northridge next Saturday (1.8.25) with a 12:45 pm tip-off. Score by quarters: Bremen 17 9 16 10 2 = 54 Jimtown 16 9 14 13 4 = 56 Junior varsity: Jimtown 39, Bremen 29 Officials: Christian Cortier (Mishawaka), Tim Hamann (Leeesburg), Tony Nemeth (South Bend).