Columbus East High School

The Columbus East freshman boys basketball team continued their mid-season surge Wednesday night, traveling to Bloomington South and securing a decisive 42-33 victory over the Panthers. Under the direction of Coach Hunter, the Olympians (9-5) have now won four consecutive games as they enter the final quarter of the regular season. East wasted no time establishing dominance, utilizing their "patented" full-court pressure defense to disrupt the Panthers early. The O’s jumped out to a 15-6 lead by the end of the first quarter, sparked by Luke Lienhoop. Lienhoop was a force on both ends of the floor in the opening period, tallying 6 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 steals. The Olympians held steady through the second quarter, carrying a 25-17 lead into halftime. In the second half, the young O's ratcheted up the defensive intensity once again, pushing their lead to as many as 13 points. Although Bloomington South made a final push late in the game to cut the deficit to six, East handled the pressure with composure to close out the contest. Scoring Leaders: Luke Lienhoop: 12 points, 6 rebounds Frank Phillips: 8 points Parker Jones: 7 points Gavin Wilcox: 6 points Dane Hoopingarner: 4 points Owen Hatfield: 3 points Jayden Wilcox: 2 points The Olympians look to keep their momentum rolling this weekend. They return to the road on Saturday, February 7th, for a 12:30 p.m. tip-off against New Albany.