Boys basketball: Noah LaPorte leads Princeton charge against Dixon

PRINCETON – Noah LaPorte was the hero on the court for the Princeton Tigers Tuesday night at Prouty Gym.

Senior reserve Karter Patterson was the unsung hero on the bench.

Tigers coach Jason Smith credited Patterson’s suggestion at halftime to switch to a different zone offense, and LaPorte and the Tigers flourished.

LaPorte scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the second half to spark the Class 2A No. 1-ranked Tigers, who trailed by one point at the half, to a 60-52 victory over Dixon.

“I have to give a shout-out to Karter Patterson. He said, ‘Coach, let’s try this offense instead of the offense we ran first half,’ and it just opened things up for us,” Smith said. “That’s good stuff for him. KP contributed to the 24 points Noah had, because of the offense he suggested.”

The Tigers improved to 20-0 with the win, one of only three undefeated boys basketball teams remaining in the state with the best record of them all.

Junior point guard Korte Lawson scored first to start the second half to give the Tigers a lead they would not give up.

Then LaPorte took over.

The 6-foot-4 sophomore forward scored four straight baskets to cap a 10-0 Tiger run for a 33-24 lead. He added two more baskets, including a dunk, as the Tigers matched their first-half effort with a 23-12 third-quarter advantage to go up 46-36.

LaPorte scored seven more points in the fourth quarter as Princeton took its biggest lead of the night at 60-44.

“He didn’t play like a sophomore tonight. He played big-boy basketball. He was a beast,” Smith said. ”It was good to see. He played that way all summer and to this point of the season, and knows what he’s capable of. I’m very proud of him and his effort.

“He had 20 points in the second half. It was all about getting him the ball in the middle and creating for himself.”

LaPorte, who said that was “definitely my best game,” said the halftime switch helped get the Tigers’ stagnant offense going.

“It helped out a lot. I could jump down to the corner and shoot my shot,” he said. “We’ve been starting out real slow. Trying to work on that. Then second half, first three minutes, we show ‘em.”

Dixon coach Chris Harmann said it’s a case of pick your poison when it comes to defending Princeton.

“[LaPorte] got a lot of great looks in the paint. They’ve got five guys who can score. Somebody’s going to get through. It’s one of those things,” he said.

Senior reserve Jason Zinke hit two 3-pointers for Dixon, which scored the final eight points of the game to draw the Dukes within eight.

The Tigers scored six straight points to take a 6-2 lead, but the Dukes dug in for battle. Austin Hicks scored on a steal and layup, and added a 3-pointer to give the Dukes a 15-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Princeton battled back to tie the game at 17 on a fast-break basket by Grady Thompson.

Bryce Feit (8) and Darius Harrington (7) combined for 15 points in the first half to lead the Dixon to a 24-23 halftime lead. Harrington finished with 11 points, Feit had 10, and Wyatt Wetzell and Hicks added eight each.

Thompson kept the Tigers in the game in the first half, scoring 10 of his 14 points before intermission. Teegan Davis chipped in 13 points on the night.

Harmann said the Dukes (14-7) gave a great effort against the No. 1-ranked team in the state.

“I thought we played all four quarters. It got a little sloppy there in the third quarter, but other than that, they played real well,” he said. “That’s a good team. Not a lot of teams can throw that kind of size out there. They’re good. They’re well-coached, disciplined with what they do. I was very proud of our effort tonight.”

The Dixon coach said the Dukes did a good job on defense knowing where the Tigers were at.

“I know we had to scramble a little bit in the second half, but holding them to 23 points in the first half, we’re going to take that every night, especially against a team like that,” he said.

Notes: Princeton won the sophomore prelim 62-48. Jordan Reinhardt led the Kittens with 27 points and Liam Swearingen added 16. Will Westmorland had 24 points for Dixon.