GREENVILLE – The Green Wave were preparing for a tough uphill battle heading into their Friday night game against Trotwood-Madison.

“They have a really good program over there,” Greenville boys basketball coach Michael Bashore said. “Every year they’re dominant, and it’s because they play hard. They earned everything that they have.”

But “good” is an understatement.

According to USA Today Sports, Trotwood-Madison is ranked ninth in the state.

And while Greenville outplayed its top-tier competitors for three quarters, a Rams 18-point unanswered streak in the third shut down the Wave’s chances for a win.

The Green Wave started out cautiously against Trotwood and tried to control the pace of the game while they sized up their opposition.

“We had a nice game plant that tried to slow it down as much as we could and space them out a little bit,” Bashore said. “So when they overplayed, we took advantage with easy baskets.”

But the deliberate stall wasn’t enough to gain a lead, and Greenville trailed by six going into the second quarter at 16-10.

Trotwood stands as the hands-down Greater Western Ohio Conference North favorite, going 12-3 on the season to date. The team has regularly chopped up other local teams like Sidney and Piqua with 30 point win-margins.

“They’re a phenomenal basketball team that wants to get out and run. You try and control that the best you can with the zone. They’ve got kids all over that can score, and you just try and contain them the best that you can,” Bashore said.

In the second quarter, Kendall Hemer and Adam Hickerson shot back-to-back treys, and the Wave found themselves back in the game. With help from Devin Wood, Greenville the was able to come within two points of Trotwood at halftime.

“We were able to do what we did because we have two really good point guards with (Allen) Tabler and Wood, and Guillozet was great helping, too,” Bashore said.

But the real trouble came in the third, as Greenville became excited and lost sight of its defense.

“When we got into the third quarter I think we started rushing things,” Bashore said. “Our eyes got a little wide, and that’s going to happen.”

The Rams’ Jamar Hammonds took control of the game with three 3-pointers to add to an 18-point streak that left the Greenville team stunned.

When the smoke cleared, Greenville was trailing 51-31.

“We got down by 20, and I didn’t know what was going to happen. But we battled back and back,” Bashore said.

A 20-point deficit still didn’t stop Greenville from finishing out the game on full blast.

With contributions from Guillozet, Hickerson and Tabler, the Green Wave halved the distance with four minutes left in the game.

“They didn’t give up,” Bashore said. “We fought so hard the while night, and that’s a huge step in a fantastic game for the team.”

Greenville would end up outscoring the Rams by 10 points in the final quarter.

Momentum was building, but Trotwood came to its senses and didn’t let Greenville break that 10-point barrier the rest of the game.

When the buzzer sounded, Greenville fell to the Rams at a respectable 75-65.

“We’re coming together,” Bashore said. “I think we showed a lot tonight.”

Greenville’s Clay Guillozet scored 17 for his team, while Adam Hickerson earned 15.

Trotwood’s Jamar Hammonds scored 28 points, and Dazhanatae Bennet scored 18.