Tigers lose to Ironmen

After starting the season off winning two of their first three ballgames, the McClain varsity boys basketball team has fallen on tough times.

The Tigers lost their third straight game to a Frontier Athletic Conference opponent, this time to a very experienced and talented Jackson team which came into the contest sporting a perfect 4-0 record.

The Ironmen, who start five seniors with lots of varsity experience, led from start to finish, winning easily 66-31 in Greenfield last Friday night.

“Jackson is a really good team that starts five seniors, and four of them have played varsity for four years now,” said McClain head coach Jarrod Haines. “That is a lot more than we do, but that’s still no excuse for the way we played tonight.

“I didn’t think our execution was very good, and the basketball just wouldn’t fall for us, especially when we really needed it to.”

Jackson jumped out to a big 17-7 first-quarter lead behind the shooting of senior point guard Jax Carroll, who had eight points which included two long threes.  Carroll ended up the game’s leading scorer with 22 points.

Senior Jordan Bell scored all five of his points for the game in the opening quarter, with three points coming on a long ball from behind the arc.

McClain played a lot better offensively in the second period, scoring 11 points, but still trailed by double digits, 29-18 at the half after the Ironmen tallied 12 in the frame.

Sophomore Conner Chandler scored five points in the quarter for the Tigers, which included a 3-pointer.

“I’m still proud of my kids. After we got down big in the first half, they battled back and were able to cut it to 11 points at the half,” Haines said. “I just wish we could have come out in the third quarter the same way, but credit to Jackson, they are well-coached and experienced, and they shot the ball really well tonight.”

The third quarter was once again the difference maker in the ballgame when the Ironmen outscored McClain 20-6 and extended their lead to 49-24 with a quarter still to play.

Carroll was the offensive catalyst in the third for Jackson, scoring the first eight points and finishing the period with 11, giving him 20 in the game. Lovett scored all six of McClain’s points in the period, including a long three-point shot at the buzzer.  

Both coaches emptied their benches in the fourth and let everyone play and gain some valuable varsity playing time.

The Ironmen once again had a big offensive quarter outscoring McClain 17-7 en route to the lopsided double-digit victory.

“We play a lot of young and inexperienced kids, and we’re trying to get them a lot of varsity experience,” Haines said. “Hopefully in a couple of years, we’ll have nights like this and be doing this to other people.”

“Our league has almost everyone back from last year, and it’s not easy, but we’re young and my kids will get back at it and work hard to get better.”

Jackson had three players in double-figures, led by Carroll’s game-high 22, followed by Bodhi Wolford with 13 and Stephen Jenkins with 12. Zane Hoyt just missed double-figure scoring with nine points for the Ironmen.

McClain was led by sophomore Hudson Lovett who had a team-high 12 points and was the only Tiger player to reach double-digits. Rounding out for McClain were Jordan Bell 5, Conner Chandler 5, Lucas Banks 5, Brady Binegar 2 and Matthew Cummins 2. The Tigers converted 5-of-7 free-throws for 71 percent.

McClain moves to 2-4 overall and 0-3 in the FAC. The Tigers next travel to Zane Trace on Tuesday, Dec. 23 for a non-league make-up game against the Pioneers.