Italy — Expecting the worst but hoping for the best, the 1A Italy Gladiators and their fans had to make the transaction from grid-iron to rim iron a bit sooner than everyone had expected. Making the sports change even more difficult for Italy was the visiting 3A Madisonville Mustangs whose warmup shirts gave a clear warning, "YES, you will be PRESSED.

With first year-head coach Brandon Ganske in place, along with assistants Jon Cady and Larry Mayberry, Sr., the Gladiators were immediately pressed after the Mustangs scored first to open the contest.

Overall, Italy handled the Mustang press well with Trevon Robertson and Tyler Anderson guiding the Gladiators across mid-court. That was just half the problem for Italy. Getting the ball to fall through the basket was the real concern for Coach Ganske who shuffled several different lineups into the game to keep players fresh.

Madisonville controlled the pace throughout to lead 15-4 after one. The Gladiators tightened the game 22-16 with 4:16 to play in the second but the Mustangs galloped to a 46-16 halftime lead.

Italy’s Ty Windham dominated the third-quarter scoring for Italy with 3-points in the frame while teammate Zain Byers put in 2 of his 6-points. Madisonville survived the scoring surge from Windham and Byers to take a 65-21 lead into the final quarter.

With the Mustangs up 79-30 in the fourth, Robertson collected some momentum for Italy after banking in consecutive 3-pointers and then finishing a fast break opportunity to lay in 8 quick points. Darol Mayberry drove in for Italy’s last basket but the Mustangs cruised to a 79-40 win.

JV Action:
With Eric Carson, Coby Bland, David De la Hoya and Kenneth Norwood leading Italy’s JV squad against Madisonville, the game was tied 16-all and remained close throughout. Madisonville clung to a 20-18 edge going into intermission.

Madisonville then built a 36-26 lead late in the third period but Norwood split a pair of free-throws and Carson made a 3-pointer from the top of the key to help Italy keep pace, 36-30, going into the fourth.

Italy made a late surge to pull within three, 45-42. What seemed to be a steal by Norwood at mid-court was ruled a kicked ball that could have altered the outcome. With the visitors enjoying home court advantage, Madisonville’s JV got the win, 47-42.

Overall, it was a good start to the season for Italy’s JV boys. Despite the varsity loss, the Gladiators showed plenty of promise, as well, with Italy primarily focused on getting their rotations down. The outing also gave Coach Ganske a chance to get to know his players better.

Go Italy!