The Daily Press Pass: McClain wins competitive game; getting back to regular schedule

For a Wednesday night non-conference game to start the 2019 part of the high school basketball schedule, the McClain Tigers and Zane Trace Pioneers put on an excellent exhibition of basketball where both teams with winning records played an outstanding game.

The Tigers won in overtime by a 61-60 score, and though not everyone is going to agree with how the game ended with a timeout call and shots at the free-throw line, don’t let that distract you from just how good of a game it was.

The Tigers team this season has been exciting to watch. The play of senior Devin Carter thus far this season has shown us a player whose determination, hard work and skill has paid off in a big way. He finished with a game-high 34 points against a very solid Zane Trace team. He battled tough inside for rebounds, battled tough inside to score points and overall let it be known just how good of a basketball player he has become.

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Dalton Mischal played a great game as well for the Tigers as he did what he needed to do to help his teammates, but he also scored some tough points and created opportunities for his teammates. It was also exciting to see Kobe Penwell play at the level he did against a strong opponent like Zane Trace. Penwell finished with 11 points and made three huge 3-pointers along the way. He also handled the basketball well at point guard, and the Tigers benefited greatly from his game on Wednesday.

All of the Tigers who were on the court against Zane Trace, including Bryson Badgley, Ethan Cockerill, Garrison Banks and Reece Schluep, all played some sort of valuable minutes in this game. Also, don’t forget the players who didn’t have game action, because they were a part of this game as well. Every time you looked over to the sideline, the players from the bench were up and excited about the action on the court, and they helped push their teammates along for the ride as every bit of that excitement was needed.

Being 8-2 this season with at least two very strong wins on their side — the other being a 50-48 win over Jackson — already this season, it is exciting to see McClain basketball back being played at not only a competitive level, but a level that has excitement. If anything, last night’s game felt like a tournament-type atmosphere at McClain Gym.

The Tigers will be back in action Saturday night at home against Highland County counterpart the Fairfield Lions, so with both teams not being very far apart from each other, and knowing how much both communities love the game of basketball, that type of atmosphere should be very exciting to be a part of when that game rolls around.

Congratulations are in order to the Tigers for their gritty win on Wednesday night, and also praise needs to go out to the Zane Trace Pioneers for playing a strong game as well, as they will be a very tough team to stop as the season progresses.

You can read Wednesday’s article on the OT game between McClain and Zane Trace by clicking here. 

TODAY’S SCHEDULE — THURSDAY, JAN. 3, 2019

There are six events on the schedule for Highland County teams on this day, including two basketball games in the Southern Hills Athletic Conference. Those games are both girls basketball, and they include:

• Whiteoak vs Lynchburg-Clay — This game features two teams on opposite side of the standings in the SHAC. The Lady Mustangs are undefeated at 9-0 overall and are playing top-notch basketball with senior Peyton Scott averaging 25.2 points per game through the first nine games played this season and junior teammate Zoe Fittro in nine games averaging 16.4 ppg. Also with a strong season in the scoring column so far is LC junior Logan Binkley with 7.9 ppg. Whiteoak is led by Cylee Bratton with 10.3 ppg this season, as she is their top player on the court. WHS is still looking for their first win of the season in what is their 12th game of the season of their rebuild of the program. Remember, this is a varsity-only game with a start of 6 p.m. at WHS.

• Fairfield at North Adams — North Adams is a strong team this season, and Fairfield has played well this season with a 7-6 overall record thus far. The Lady Lions have played a lot on the road this season with their schedule consisting of very few home games. One player who is playing well is sophomore Samara Cannon, who through 12 games this season is averaging 14.4 ppg for the Lady Lions. Of her fellow teammates, senior Brianna Barnes is averaging 11.4 ppg in 13 games played, and freshman Emma Fouch is averaging 8.2 ppg. North Adams is 3-2 in the SHAC this season and 5-3 overall. Their only SHAC losses are to Eastern Brown and Lynchburg-Clay.

Other events for Highland County teams on Thursday are: McClain wrestling vs. Miami Trace and Circleville, McClain swimming vs. Hillsboro, Hillsboro wrestling at Jackson and McClain bowling vs. Miami Trace and Washington.

The complete SHAC Girls Basketball Schedule for Thursday, Jan. 3 includes:
- Lynchburg-Clay at Whiteoak;
- Fairfield at North Adams;
- Manchester at Ripley;
- Bethel-Tate at West Union;
- Adena at Eastern Brown.

• FINAL THOUGHTS BEFORE TIP-OFF
Again, for how last night’s game between the Tigers and the Pioneers ended, some won’t agree on how the final few seconds played out with decisions by the officials. Don’t let that take away from just how good of a high school basketball game it was, especially following Christmas and holiday breaks.

The Tigers and Pioneers left everything on the court Wednesday night and put on a show where both fan bases can be proud of how their teams played. It is rare to have that strong of an atmosphere at the start of January, but both teams and fan bases made the game feel like it was a tournament game. Games like this one Wednesday are what high school basketball is all about.

Stephen Forsha is the sports editor of The Highland County Press. He can be reached at sforsha@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @HCPSportsEditor.