Last week I sent out a tweet about 2012 IU commit Ron Patterson (Broad Ripple) that ruffled some feathers:
Ron Patterson having to be held back by teammates after a loss in which he fouled out? Sounds like a class act to me.-- Avi Zaleon (@avi_zaleon) February 18, 2012
Did I say some feathers? OK, I meant a lot of feathers.
But somewhere in the avalanche of responses, which were split pretty evenly between positive and negative, was one glaring point -that I needed to actually see this kid play in-person.
I may not always express opinions that people agree with, but at the end of the day, I'd rather be fair than popular.
So I put my money where my mouth is and headed up to Indianapolis Friday night to see Patterson play in his final regular season game in a Broad Ripple uniform at George Washington High School.
First, the bare bones stat line for Patterson (stats are unofficial and were recorded by me throughout the game):
FINAL
Broad Ripple: 61
George Washington: 47
PATTERSON
1st Half 2nd half Total
Field Goals: 1-9 6-13 7-22
Free throws: none 3-5 3-5
3pt: 0-3 1-3 1-6
Points: 2 16 18
Rebounds: 2 5 7
Assists: 2 3 5
Turnovers: 3 2 5
Steals: 1 3 4
Fouls: 1 0 1
A more detailed story on Patterson's performance is below:
INDIANAPOLIS -- Ron Patterson stole the ball and drove towards the hoop for a breakaway layup in the second quarter of Broad Ripple's final regular season game of the season.
With nobody around him, it appeared Patterson would score easily for his first points of the game.
But the nice defensive play ended in disappointment, as the 2012 IU commit missed the layup. Patterson came down showing a cut on his arm and the athletic guard subbed out at the 2:53 mark of the second quarter to get it patched up.
That was about how things were going for Patterson in the first half. A 16-minute period in which he unofficially shot 1-for-9 from the field and 0-for-3 from three with a pair of assists and three turnovers.
With the blood cleaned off, Patterson came back into the game with two minutes left in the half to conclude his only absence from the contest.
It would signal a healing of not only his arm, but his game.
Patterson exploded in the second half, scoring 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting, grabbing five rebounds and recording three steals.
"I started on defense and ended on offense," Patterson said.
The wide-shouldered guard got nearly all of his points at the rim, as he used a fast first step to quickly take the ball from the perimeter and drive into the lane. But there lied some inconsistency in how he finished.
While some of Patterson's drives were erratic in the first half, a more composed senior dazzled the crowd in the second by using his excellent vertical and improved body control.
With a little over a minute left in the third quarter, Patterson missed a layup, but got his own rebound off the glass and threw down a ferocious two-handed put-back slam.
"It felt good because I didn't get a good look all night," he said of the dunk.
Then with 5:48 to go in the game, Patterson drove baseline and split three -yes, three- defenders to put up a reverse layup as Broad Ripple pulled away in the fourth quarter.
However, Patterson's passing ability might have been the best dimension of his offensive game Friday. Seemingly endless court vision and crisp passes in nearly every way possible set up his teammates for good looks at the bucket. His total of five assists doesn't really do justice to amount of opportunities he created for the Rockets.
On defense, Patterson outmatched every player on Washington and essentially locked down his man the whole game. He was active with double teams, as Broad Ripple frustrated the Continentals in a game riddled with turnovers by both squads.
One of the only aspects of Patterson's game that disappointed me was his ability to get back in the transition game. There were times when a Washington turnover led to a Rockets fast break in which Patterson lagged behind.
Patterson and Broad Ripple now look to their pairing for sectionals.
After that, Patterson says it's all about preparing over the summer for his freshman season at IU.
"Get in the gym and get ready to play," he said.
