Third time's the charm for Lions; defeat Wildcats in sectionals
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
LUCASVILLE – The third time was the charm for the Fairfield Lions Tuesday evening at Valley High School as they took advantage of the foul trouble of rival Whiteoak, battling tooth-and-nail with the Wildcats, with the Lions gaining a 49-44 victory, earning them a trip to the Division IV SE District Sectional Final.
Even compared to their first two matchups, this game was played physically with neither team giving an inch when the ball entered the paint.
"Grit, determination and survival is how we played tonight," Fairfield head coach Matt Carson said. "We hadn't had a lead on them all year until the first basket of the game (Tuesday). The kids showed how their hard work paid off, and I can't be more proud of them."
Each quarter ended with one team leading by one point or with the score being tied until the final second ticked off the clock.
Whiteoak head coach Tom Wessner credited the zone defense of the Lions as it stopped the Wildcats, unlike the first two games earlier in the year.
"We didn't find the holes like before," Wessner said. "Unlike the first two games where they went out of the zone to defend us, this time we couldn't force them out of it. That was a big difference this time around."
Carson was pleased with zone defense the third time.
"We played the matchup zone, and that is what we do best," Carson said.
The composure of the game changed in the third quarter when Whiteoak junior Joe Michael got into foul trouble, forcing the Wildcats to go to their bench. Before two straight fouls, Michael scored the first points of the third at the 7:19 mark to put the Wildcats ahead 24-23.
"Joe averages 15-9 per game, and when we don't have him for an extended time during a game, it hurts us," Wessner said. "We need him on the court to have more options with our offense. Joe does a lot for us when he is on the court."
Even with the team in foul trouble, the Wildcats held strong against the Lions as FHS regained the lead with a free throw and layup by junior Chris Cox. The points from Cox were followed with two points by junior Cameron Rolark to extend the Lions' lead to four points (28-24).
After a quick timeout by WHS, senior Ethan Hawkins took a charge, followed by senior Ben Barnett nailing a jumper and Hawkins tying the game at 28. Barnett finished with 10 points.
With 2:51 left in the third, sophomore Mike Carraher drained a 3-pointer from the corner to lift the Wildcats up 31-28. Carraher finished with a team-high 14 points.
Carraher continued his assault from beyond the arc with another 3-ball from nearly the same spot to put the Wildcats ahead 34-29.
The Lions kept their composure, and with 1:56 left in the third, Cox scored a three-point play as the junior made a layup while being fouled. Cox finished the three-point play with a converted free throw. Cox had the game high in scoring with 26 points.
Senior Nick Sowders finished off the scoring in the third with a put back bucket with 29 seconds remaining.
"Nick played a excellent, scrappy game for us," Carson said.
With the score tied at 34 headed into the final frame, Cox took over at the beginning of the final eight minutes with a corner jumper and inside points, putting the Lions up four with 6:19 to play.
Whiteoak continued to claw back with five straight points, with Carraher nailing his third 3-ball of the second half and senior Jerry Stuckey scoring two points with a jumper.
Cox and Henson answered with back-to-back points in a span of 24 seconds to put FHS up 42-30.
From the 3:44 mark until the 48.6 mark, there was no scoring in the game, with both teams playing tough as they were diving after basketballs and forcing one another into jump ball situations.
Adams put points on the board for FHS with a steal and fast break for an easy layup to increase the Lions' lead to five points.
Whiteoak had one last push in them with Michael and Hawkins going on a 4-0 run in 10 seconds to cut the FHS lead to one point at 44-43.
Henson came back with two free throws. WHS had an opportunity to tie the game with three free throw opportunities, but netted one, as Henson and Rolark ended the game with three free throws for the Lions.
"At one point I wanted to call a timeout but I thought to myself I wanted to see how the kids would react," Carson said. "The kids are growing up. I compare this game to an old McClain-Hillsboro game where both teams are giving everything they have."
The opening quarter was a forecast of what was to come with the Lions leading 11-10 after eight game minutes. WHS jumped out of a 6-2 lead, but Carraher made his first 3-ball of the contest at the 3:56 mark of the first. Barnett added to the WHS total for their first lead of the game as the senior knocked down a 3-pointer.
At the 2:18 mark the Lions built a 21-17 lead with Cox, Adams and senior Josh Honeycutt going on a 6-0 run.
The Lions will play again on March 2 at Valley High School in the sectional final. The game is scheduled for 6:15 p.m.
BOX SCORE
SCORE BY QUARTERS
FHS - 11 12 11 15 - 49
WHS - 10 12 12 10 - 44
INDIVIDUAL STATS
FHS (49)
Sowders 1 2, Adams 1 3-5 5, Rolark 3 3-3 9, Henson 1 3-6 5, Cox 11 4-5 26, Honeycutt 1 2. TOTALS: 18 (0) 13-19 49.
WHS (44)
Stuckey 3 0-2 6, Barnett 1 (2) 2-5 10, Michael 2 4, Eyre 1 2-2 4, Hawkins 3 6, Carraher 1 (4) 14. TOTALS: 11 (6) 4-9 44.[[In-content Ad]]
Even compared to their first two matchups, this game was played physically with neither team giving an inch when the ball entered the paint.
"Grit, determination and survival is how we played tonight," Fairfield head coach Matt Carson said. "We hadn't had a lead on them all year until the first basket of the game (Tuesday). The kids showed how their hard work paid off, and I can't be more proud of them."
Each quarter ended with one team leading by one point or with the score being tied until the final second ticked off the clock.
Whiteoak head coach Tom Wessner credited the zone defense of the Lions as it stopped the Wildcats, unlike the first two games earlier in the year.
"We didn't find the holes like before," Wessner said. "Unlike the first two games where they went out of the zone to defend us, this time we couldn't force them out of it. That was a big difference this time around."
Carson was pleased with zone defense the third time.
"We played the matchup zone, and that is what we do best," Carson said.
The composure of the game changed in the third quarter when Whiteoak junior Joe Michael got into foul trouble, forcing the Wildcats to go to their bench. Before two straight fouls, Michael scored the first points of the third at the 7:19 mark to put the Wildcats ahead 24-23.
"Joe averages 15-9 per game, and when we don't have him for an extended time during a game, it hurts us," Wessner said. "We need him on the court to have more options with our offense. Joe does a lot for us when he is on the court."
Even with the team in foul trouble, the Wildcats held strong against the Lions as FHS regained the lead with a free throw and layup by junior Chris Cox. The points from Cox were followed with two points by junior Cameron Rolark to extend the Lions' lead to four points (28-24).
After a quick timeout by WHS, senior Ethan Hawkins took a charge, followed by senior Ben Barnett nailing a jumper and Hawkins tying the game at 28. Barnett finished with 10 points.
With 2:51 left in the third, sophomore Mike Carraher drained a 3-pointer from the corner to lift the Wildcats up 31-28. Carraher finished with a team-high 14 points.
Carraher continued his assault from beyond the arc with another 3-ball from nearly the same spot to put the Wildcats ahead 34-29.
The Lions kept their composure, and with 1:56 left in the third, Cox scored a three-point play as the junior made a layup while being fouled. Cox finished the three-point play with a converted free throw. Cox had the game high in scoring with 26 points.
Senior Nick Sowders finished off the scoring in the third with a put back bucket with 29 seconds remaining.
"Nick played a excellent, scrappy game for us," Carson said.
With the score tied at 34 headed into the final frame, Cox took over at the beginning of the final eight minutes with a corner jumper and inside points, putting the Lions up four with 6:19 to play.
Whiteoak continued to claw back with five straight points, with Carraher nailing his third 3-ball of the second half and senior Jerry Stuckey scoring two points with a jumper.
Cox and Henson answered with back-to-back points in a span of 24 seconds to put FHS up 42-30.
From the 3:44 mark until the 48.6 mark, there was no scoring in the game, with both teams playing tough as they were diving after basketballs and forcing one another into jump ball situations.
Adams put points on the board for FHS with a steal and fast break for an easy layup to increase the Lions' lead to five points.
Whiteoak had one last push in them with Michael and Hawkins going on a 4-0 run in 10 seconds to cut the FHS lead to one point at 44-43.
Henson came back with two free throws. WHS had an opportunity to tie the game with three free throw opportunities, but netted one, as Henson and Rolark ended the game with three free throws for the Lions.
"At one point I wanted to call a timeout but I thought to myself I wanted to see how the kids would react," Carson said. "The kids are growing up. I compare this game to an old McClain-Hillsboro game where both teams are giving everything they have."
The opening quarter was a forecast of what was to come with the Lions leading 11-10 after eight game minutes. WHS jumped out of a 6-2 lead, but Carraher made his first 3-ball of the contest at the 3:56 mark of the first. Barnett added to the WHS total for their first lead of the game as the senior knocked down a 3-pointer.
At the 2:18 mark the Lions built a 21-17 lead with Cox, Adams and senior Josh Honeycutt going on a 6-0 run.
The Lions will play again on March 2 at Valley High School in the sectional final. The game is scheduled for 6:15 p.m.
BOX SCORE
SCORE BY QUARTERS
FHS - 11 12 11 15 - 49
WHS - 10 12 12 10 - 44
INDIVIDUAL STATS
FHS (49)
Sowders 1 2, Adams 1 3-5 5, Rolark 3 3-3 9, Henson 1 3-6 5, Cox 11 4-5 26, Honeycutt 1 2. TOTALS: 18 (0) 13-19 49.
WHS (44)
Stuckey 3 0-2 6, Barnett 1 (2) 2-5 10, Michael 2 4, Eyre 1 2-2 4, Hawkins 3 6, Carraher 1 (4) 14. TOTALS: 11 (6) 4-9 44.[[In-content Ad]]