LOYAL. LOCAL. COMPLETE.
PARIS—When fans filed into the Paris Cooperative High School gym on Friday, Jan. 17, they had no clue what they were about to witness. The Paris Tigers (12-8, 2-2) hosted the North Central Thunderbirds (6-6, 2-1) in a game filled with drama, tension and lategame heroics—an instant classic.
The Orange and Black emerged with a win, and will look to keep the good times rolling against Marshall in round one of the Little Illini Conference Tournament Saturday, Jan. 25. Tip-off is set for 2:30 p.m. Should the Tigers advance, they’ll take on Richland County or Robinson on Tuesday, Jan. 28 at 6 p.m.
Jackson Rigdon was recognized before the game for his assist records, both for a single game (13) and in his career (302). The senior star is also chasing steal records, and his latest may have been the most dramatic.
Rigdon sagged off his man assignment, drifting toward the elbow while the Thunderbird he guarded stayed near the corner—wide-open for a shot if his teammate with the ball saw him. The ball handler faced the opposite direction, preventing him from seeing his unguarded teammate and Rigdon, who was sprinting up from behind.
Rigdon had a clean look at the ball and poked it loose into the front court before chasing it down and finishing with a layup to put Paris back up by one point with 1:20 left on the clock.
The steal and transition layup secured the lead once more for the Tigers after North Central opened the fourth quarter on a 16-6 run. Paris led by as many as 11 in the third quarter after Rigdon knocked down two left-wing threes when the score was 43-42. Rigdon then assisted on a Jacob Staley triple.
Karic Vitale was aggressive in the paint all night long. One of his drives ended in a Carter Crippes putback. Crippes launched from outside the lane, caught the rebound in the air and wasted no time getting the ball back onto the glass and through the hoop.
Paris led 54-44 at the time.
Fast-forward to Rigdon’s scoop and score, and the score was 65-64 in favor of Paris. A minute later, a technical foul compounded with a common foul for North Central right after the Thunderbirds had scored to get back within one at 67-66. Rigdon made three of the four awarded free throws, giving the Tigers a four-point, two-possession lead with the ball.
Rigdon went two-for-two after another North Central foul on the ensuing inbound, giving him 31 points on the night. The Tigers held a six-point lead.
Ethan Willis leaned into a deep three for North Central, one of his many triples of the evening, as he finished with 27. The visitors connected 12 times from deep to keep them in striking distance of the Tigers.
Staley connected on a pair of crucial free throws, giving Paris a five-point cushion. Willis had one more three to knock down to reach the final score of 74-72, but the Tigers weren’t forced to inbound the ball. The final seven seconds ticked away with the basketball lying on the court.
The final firework of the night was North Central’s Coach Harrold picking up the team’s next technical after the final buzzer for his complaints over how the officials handled the final moments.
Jackson Rigdon led with 31 points, three assists and three steals, going 15-18 from the line. Carter Eastham finished with 15 points, hitting nine of 12 free throws and hauling in 10 rebounds.
Carter Crippes snagged 10 rebounds to pair with his four points. Jacob Staley and Karic Vitale scored 11 each while Madox Hutchings had two. Vitale tallied nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.