New Palestine High School

The New Palestine boys basketball team clinched the second 20-win season in school history Saturday, beating host Whiteland 66-50. The No. 13 Dragons trailed by five points early, but rallied by scoring the final six points of the first quarter to take a 13-11 lead and never relinquished the advantage to improve to 20-2 on the season. Whiteland built a quick 7-2 lead, slowing the Dragons with a 2-3 zone defense, but the Dragons got a 3-pointer from Eian Roudebush to cut into the deficit. A basket by Ian Stephens was answered by Whiteland scores to put the Warriors up 11-7, but Julius Gizzi and Moses Haynes closed the quarter with 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give the Dragons the lead at the buzzer. Gizzi scored an early three-point play and Blaine Nunnally hit two 3-pointers and a basket to help the Dragons build a 26-17 lead in the second quarter and a 28-23 lead at the break. The Dragons quickly pushed the lead to double digits in the third, with Gizzi tallying an early three-point play and Nunnally scoring seven points in the frame. Ben Slagley added a pair of quick baskets and Ian Stephens scored five points to push the lead to 42-32 and later 47-37. Eian Roudebush drilled a 3-pointer at the buzzer to extend the edge to 50-37 going into the fourth. Whiteland had a push early in the fourth, hitting a 3-pointer on the first possession and scoring 13 points in the first half of the quarter, but that push was answered by the Dragons, as Slagley hit two quick inside shots to keep the lead at 54-44. Slagley and Nunnally added baskets to make it a 58-50 game as Whiteland's Austin Willoughby and Wiatt McLaughlin combined for six early points in the frame. But in the last three minutes, the Dragons scored the quarter's final eight points, starting with a basket by Slagley and followed by a three-point play by Stephens that made it a 63-50 game. The Warriors never closed the lead inside eight in the fourth quarter. Nunnally led the Dragons with 21 points and now has 1,199 for his career and is closing in on becoming the third Dragon to reach the 1,200-point milestone. Stephens added 14 points. Slagley scored 11 - all in the second half. Gizzi also scored 11 to give the Dragons four double-figure scorers. Roudebush scored six and Haynes three. McLaughlin led Whiteland with 15 points, while Willoughby scored 14. The Dragons dropped the JV game 60-50. The Dragons close the regular season Friday at home against Greenwood. It will be the Dragons' senior night.