McClain controls tempo in win over rival Fairfield

LEESBURG — Grandle Gymnasium was loud, jam-packed and basketball was center stage, as the McClain Tigers controlled the tempo when they and the Fairfield Lions battled in a physical game where it was MHS gaining the road, non-conference win by a 70-56 score.

The rivalry game between the two teams separated by fewer than 15 minutes also had two Fairfield graduates as head coaches for the two programs, with Jarrod Haines coaching against his alma mater for the first time in boys basketball, and Quentin Williams coaching the Lions.

With bragging rights on the line, it was McClain with the upper hand early on with a five-point lead less than two minutes into the game as they led 6-1 following two 3-pointers by Jordan Bell.

Bell finished with 24 points in the win, collecting a total of six 3-pointers and three two-point baskets.

“Jordan Bell was unbelievable,” Haines said. “I felt like we got him a lot of good looks, and he took advantage. Man, he carried us at the beginning. He built that lead.

“Then our defense just was tenacious, very physical, fundamental. It's what I brought, and I've tried to teach, and it didn't get out of hand. We didn't get our hands out. We just moved our bodies and beat them to the spot. Total team effort for sure.”

McClain continued to lead for most of the first quarter and never trailed, as Bell made a third 3-pointer in the opening quarter with 2:50 on the clock, breaking the lone tie in the first, for a 13-10 lead.

Also in the first for MHS, Zane Adams scored four points, Riley Cummins made a free throw and Owen Sykes made a basket.

Fairfield in the first quarter had 10 of their 14 points scored by Logan McIntosh off two 3-pointers and two two-point baskets. McIntosh finished the game with 18 points, totaling four two-point baskets, two 3-pointers and he was 4-of-6 from the free-throw line.

The Lions also had two points in the second scored by Griffin Friend, who ended the game with 16 points, including two 3-pointers, four two-pointers and going 2-of-3 from the free-throw line. Caleb Barrera and Brody Smith each made a free throw in the first frame.

Smith ended the game with 11 points, making two 3-pointers, two two-point shots and he was 1-of-4 from the free-throw line.

“Let's not take away from the fact that Fairfield is a really good team,” Haines said. “They have weapons all over. The Friend kid can shoot. The Smith kid can shoot. What a horrible matchup nightmare Logan McIntosh is for everyone. But I thought our physicality really bothered them, and I didn't know if it would, because they're pretty physical themselves. We were physical on defense, and things just kept going our way offensively.  

“Man, I'm proud of the kids. This is what I dreamed of when I took over this job, coming and competing with these teams and then eventually giving yourself a chance to win, and then we definitely did that.”

McClain was still hot from the field in the second frame, doubling up the Lions 18-9 in the quarter for a halftime advantage of 36-23.

Though McClain’s defense made a big difference in the second quarter by holding FHS to nine points, their offense was a difference maker too, starting the quarter with five straight points off a basket by Sykes — who scored 12 points for the Tigers — and a fourth 3-pointer by Bell.

With MHS holding a nine-point lead at the 7:03 mark, that lead went to 11 points with four straight points by Sykes. Friend answered with a three-point play, but the Tigers came back with a 7-0 run.

That run started with a free throw by Brandon Greene, then a layup by Hudson Lovett, a 3-pointer by Bell (his fifth of the first half) and a free throw by Lovett for a 34-19 lead with 1:21 left in the second.

McIntosh made two free throws for FHS, but two free throws from Julien Evans saw McClain increase their lead to 15 points. The Lions ended the scoring in the first half with a basket by Friend, leaving the halftime score at 36-23.

The Tigers outscored Fairfield 19-17 in the third frame, as the Tigers led by as many as 17 points in the quarter following a basket by Lovett with 2:06 left in the quarter.

MHS in the third had the sixth 3-pointer of the game by Bell, along with Bell making a two-point basket in the same quarter.

The third also had five points by Adams (including a 3-pointer), a 3-pointer from Cummins, four points by Sykes, and a two-point bucket from Greene as he finished the game with nine points.

“Hudson Lovett got a big rebound for us, a freshman, every time we needed it,” Haines said. “Owen Sykes was huge on the board, had 12 tough points. He's going to have to score like that if we're going to have a chance to win. Zane Adams made some timely shots for us tonight when they were making runs, and Riley Cummins just was all over the place. Defensively, he guarded the Smith kid. He kept him in check for one point in the first half. I thought that was a huge difference in the first half for sure.

“Julien Evans came in and gave us big minutes. But I thought probably the biggest minutes all night were from Brandon Greene. We know that he can do that, and we have been waiting for him to do that. Man, he made some big buckets for us.”

The Lions’ highest scoring quarter saw them have four points by Friend (including a 3-pointer), two made free throws by Barrera, and a 3-pointer from Smith. Plus the third frame had Quentin McIntosh and Logan McIntosh each make two free throws.

Though the Lions outscored the Tigers 16-15 in the fourth, McClain entered the fourth with a 15-point lead.

For the Tigers, their fourth quarter consisted of five points by Adams, six points from Greene and two points each scored by Cummins and Bell.

Fairfield in the fourth had five points by Friend, three points scored by Smith, two points from Logan McIntosh and four points by Zach Ahsaruk.

McClain’s win lifts their overall record to 7-8. Fairfield is now 10-5.

“It gives us a lot of confidence,” Haines said. “However, the road doesn't get any easier. We know what they can do now. All right, there's no excuses, so you got to put that together.

“I’m happy for McClain hoops and the culture we're trying to build, but we're not happy, and we're not done. We wanted to win a game like this, and we got one, so we know what they can do, so we’ve got to keep going.”

BOX SCORE
MHS    18 18 19 15 — 70
FHS     14 09 17 16 — 56

MCCLAIN (70) — Z.Adams 3 (2) 2-2 14, R.Cummins 1 (1) 1-3 6, J.Bell 3 (6) 0-0 24, J.Evans 0 (0) 2-2 2, O.Sykes 6 (0) 0-0 12, H.Lovett 1 (0) 1-2 3, B.Greene 4 (0) 1-2 9. TOTALS: 18 (9) 7-11 70.

FAIRFIELD (56) — G.Friend 4 (2) 2-3 16, C.Barrera 0 (0) 3-4 3, B.Smith 2 (2) 1-4 11, L.McIntosh 4 (2) 4-6 18, Z.Ahsaruk 2 (0) 0-1 4, Q.McIntosh 1 (0) 2-2 4. TOTALS: 13 (6) 12-18 56.

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