Lady Tigers prevail in OT over Miami Trace
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
EBER — Needing a win in the middle stages of the South Central Ohio League season, the McClain Lady Tigers did what they haven't accomplished in a few years. MHS won at "The Panther Pit" at Miami Trace High School, and not only won, but did it in dramatic fashion with timely baskets and points in not only the fourth quarter, but in overtime, for a 49-47 win Thursday.
The win wasn't just any win, but a coveted South Central Ohio League win ... a win that keeps McClain in the league title race.
Two of the biggest shots made by McClain came from senior Sammy Rooks. Rooks, who had to sit portions of the SCOL contest due to foul trouble, sank a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime with 10 seconds left in the fourth, tying the game at 40.
In the overtime period, with the score now tied at 47, with 29 seconds on the clock … it was now or never time for the Lady Tigers.
It ended up being now time, with Rooks (who had four fouls against her) hitting a jumper from the side of the basket (off a pass from Jenna Perie, right in front of her own bench, sending the Lady Tigers to a two-point lead with 1.9 seconds left on the scoreboard.
Rooks finished with a team-high 14 points.
"The situation ended up being (in overtime) that we got out of the play we originally set up. Miami Trace was scrambling so hard, trying to cut our passing lanes off, that in both cases Sammy ended up being open," McClain head coach Dennis Overstake said. "The one at the end of regulation … she (Sammy) was open right at the top of the key, and I don't think at first she wanted to shoot it because she kind of hitched. Then she went ahead, went through and shot it.
"That's her normal good shot right there (at the top of the key). Add to that, Jenna passed her the ball. Jenna's been doing that all season by finding people open, and Sammy just finished. We've been talking about that all year … having the ability to finish at the basket."
The defending eight-time SCOL champion Lady Panthers had the opportunity to tie or win the game, but were unable to do either with under 2 seconds remaining.
The win keeps MHS in third place in the SCOL, trailing league leader Clinton-Massie (5-0, 10-1) by two games and second-place Washington (4-1, 10-1) by one game in the league standings. McClain now stands at 8-3 overall and 4-2 in the SCOL with their league losses coming to the aforementioned teams of CM and WCH.
"It has been a long time since we've had a (win) here," Overstake said. "It's a big win for the fact it keeps us in the race for the SCOL. We've always had good teams here, but Coach (James) Stutzman always does a nice job of getting all his kids ready to play.
"Up until this year, they lose only one or two ball games a year, so they are always prepared and ready to play. We were fortunate to come out of here with a victory."
As for the Lady Panthers (3-3, 10-3), if they want to add the ninth consecutive championship trophy to their trophy case, they have some work to do, as they are now fourth in the league standings with three league losses with six league games remaining.
For the Lady Tigers, this was their second consecutive win against MT dating back to last season and their fifth win against the MT program in their last nine meetings, including the postseason.
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Getting the win over MT was as nerve-wracking for MHS as probably any win this season, including their non-league overtime, last-second win against Lynchburg-Clay early in the season.
"We are very similar in what we each want to do in every ball game," Overstake said of his Lady Tiger team and MT. "We each have several players who can score, and they got a majority of their points from McKay. We had several clutch moments in the end with free throws and the shots by Sammy … so, it all goes together."
McClain led by as many as 10 points in the second quarter, but by the end of the quarter, they trailed by three points at 24-21, and that was after leading the first quarter at 15-7.
In that opening quarter, McClain began with five straight points by Shania Massie and a 3-pointer from Rooks at the 5:13 mark. The Lady Tigers eventually took a 12-2 advantage with Massie knocking down a 3-pointer, Perie converting a three-point play and Rooks draining a jumper with 1:54 left in the opening quarter. Massie finished with 13 points, and Perie tallied seven points and 10 rebounds.
After five consecutive points by the Lady Panthers, it was Rooks who gave the fans in attendance a preview of what would eventually come, sinking a 3-pointer at the buzzer just from the midway point of the court, giving MHS an eight-point lead after eight minutes.
For all their success in the first quarter, the second quarter was opposite for the Lady Tigers as they shot the ball less than 10 times, lost a double-digit lead and trailed at the halftime buzzer by three points. MT outscored MHS, 17-6 for a lead of 24-21.
In the second, MT went on a 10-2 run, cutting the MHS advantage to 19-18 with buckets from Kristin Reisinger, Deidre McKay, Abby Schwenk, and Josie Cobb as Cobb sank a wide-open 3-pointer from the corner of the court with 3:06 left in the quarter.
McKay led all scorers with 16 points, and Cobb finished with 10 points. Schwenk added eight.
After a free throw by Kate Crabtree (who totaled 10 points), the Lady Panthers tied the game at 20 with points underneath the hoop from Schwenk, erasing what was a 10-point MHS lead with 1:53 left in the first half.
Two baskets in the final 1:25 by McKay put MT ahead by three points at the half.
If the first quarter was won by the Lady Tigers and MT prevailed in the second … the third was pretty much a draw on the offensive and defensive side of the court, as MHS outscored the host team 7-6, trailing by two points (30-28) after three quarters.
In the second half, the Lady Tigers switched their defense from man-to-man to a couple different zone looks, keeping MT to unofficially at 29 percent from the field in the second half.
"Several of our coaches have scouted Miami Trace and had talked about how they were struggling some with their perimeter shooting," Overstake said. "We had that in the back of our mind. We wanted to play man as much as possible, but we came out in the second half and decided to change things up.
"(Miami Trace) still got to their shooters and still scored points. We still didn't do a real good job of it, but it did keep Sammy out on the floor and kept others out of foul trouble, even though they got to the bonus before we did."
The score was tied twice in the third (seven times in the game) at 26 and 28. Perie was first to tie the game at 26 with a free-throw at the midway mark of the quarter. McKay came back and tied the game, after two free throws by Crabtree lifted MHS into the lead, with 1:47 left in the third. Reisinger put MT back on top with a jumper.
In the final frame, the score was tied at 30, 32, 34 and at 40 with no time left in regulation, as it was McClain who made the score tied each time in the fourth.
Brittany Mullikin was first to tie the score in the fourth at 30, and again at 32 with 6:12 left in the quarter. After Ariana Mabra put MT back in the lead, Taylor Faulconer tied the score at 34, powering her way to the hoop with 4:16 on the clock.
The next time MHS chipped away with a free throw by Mullikin, and a put-back basket from Crabtree lifted MHS into the lead at 37-36. MT regained the lead at 40-37, leaving 33 seconds on the clock, which was enough time for Rooks to send the game into overtime with her second 3-pointer of the game.
MT opened the overtime period (which is 4:00) with a 3-pointer by Cobb, but Rooks was there with a jumper. After MT was charged with a travel, Crabtree scored two points in the paint while under defensive pressure. Perie followed with a free throw, putting MHS up 45-43 with 1:33 left in OT. The lead went to 46-43 after Massie made 1-of-2 from the free-throw line.
Following turnovers, free throws and a jumper by the Lady Panthers the score stood tied at 47 with 29 seconds on the clock, which led to the jumper by Rooks to win the game.
The Lady Tigers will have a few days to prepare for their next game, as they will travel to face the Hillsboro Lady Indians on Wednesday, Jan. 18 in a SCOL contest. In their first meeting this season, MHS defeated HHS 53-21 at MHS.
MT will play their next SCOL game on Wednesday, Jan. 18 at Washington. Their game scheduled for Sunday in the Pickerington Shootout against Alexander has been cancelled.
GAME NOTES: MT was 8-of-10 from the free-throw line … MT committed 16 fouls … MT totaled 17 rebounds, eight steals and three assists … MT had 17 turnovers … MHS had 21 rebounds (six offensive) … MHS totaled one block (Crabtree), four steals, 17 turnovers and four assists (Perie).
BOX SCORE
SCORE BY QUARTERS
MHS 15 06 07 12 09 — 49
MT 07 17 06 10 07 — 47
INDIVIDUAL STATS
MHS (49)
S.Rooks 4 (2) 0-0 14
T.Faulconer 1 (0) 0-1 2
S.Massie 4 (1) 2-4 13
K.Crabtree 3 (0) 4-6 10
B.Mullikin 1 (0) 1-2 3
J.Perie 2 (0) 3-5 7
TOTALS: 15 (3) 10-18 49
MT (47)
J.Cobb 1 (2) 2-2 10
D.McKay 7 (0) 2-4 16
T.Smith 1 (1) 0-0 5
A.Mabra 2 (0) 0-0 4
A.Schwenk 2 (0) 4-4 8
K.Reisinger 2 (0) 0-0 4
TOTALS: 15 (3) 8-10 47
The win wasn't just any win, but a coveted South Central Ohio League win ... a win that keeps McClain in the league title race.
Two of the biggest shots made by McClain came from senior Sammy Rooks. Rooks, who had to sit portions of the SCOL contest due to foul trouble, sank a 3-pointer to send the game into overtime with 10 seconds left in the fourth, tying the game at 40.
In the overtime period, with the score now tied at 47, with 29 seconds on the clock … it was now or never time for the Lady Tigers.
It ended up being now time, with Rooks (who had four fouls against her) hitting a jumper from the side of the basket (off a pass from Jenna Perie, right in front of her own bench, sending the Lady Tigers to a two-point lead with 1.9 seconds left on the scoreboard.
Rooks finished with a team-high 14 points.
"The situation ended up being (in overtime) that we got out of the play we originally set up. Miami Trace was scrambling so hard, trying to cut our passing lanes off, that in both cases Sammy ended up being open," McClain head coach Dennis Overstake said. "The one at the end of regulation … she (Sammy) was open right at the top of the key, and I don't think at first she wanted to shoot it because she kind of hitched. Then she went ahead, went through and shot it.
"That's her normal good shot right there (at the top of the key). Add to that, Jenna passed her the ball. Jenna's been doing that all season by finding people open, and Sammy just finished. We've been talking about that all year … having the ability to finish at the basket."
The defending eight-time SCOL champion Lady Panthers had the opportunity to tie or win the game, but were unable to do either with under 2 seconds remaining.
The win keeps MHS in third place in the SCOL, trailing league leader Clinton-Massie (5-0, 10-1) by two games and second-place Washington (4-1, 10-1) by one game in the league standings. McClain now stands at 8-3 overall and 4-2 in the SCOL with their league losses coming to the aforementioned teams of CM and WCH.
"It has been a long time since we've had a (win) here," Overstake said. "It's a big win for the fact it keeps us in the race for the SCOL. We've always had good teams here, but Coach (James) Stutzman always does a nice job of getting all his kids ready to play.
"Up until this year, they lose only one or two ball games a year, so they are always prepared and ready to play. We were fortunate to come out of here with a victory."
As for the Lady Panthers (3-3, 10-3), if they want to add the ninth consecutive championship trophy to their trophy case, they have some work to do, as they are now fourth in the league standings with three league losses with six league games remaining.
For the Lady Tigers, this was their second consecutive win against MT dating back to last season and their fifth win against the MT program in their last nine meetings, including the postseason.
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Getting the win over MT was as nerve-wracking for MHS as probably any win this season, including their non-league overtime, last-second win against Lynchburg-Clay early in the season.
"We are very similar in what we each want to do in every ball game," Overstake said of his Lady Tiger team and MT. "We each have several players who can score, and they got a majority of their points from McKay. We had several clutch moments in the end with free throws and the shots by Sammy … so, it all goes together."
McClain led by as many as 10 points in the second quarter, but by the end of the quarter, they trailed by three points at 24-21, and that was after leading the first quarter at 15-7.
In that opening quarter, McClain began with five straight points by Shania Massie and a 3-pointer from Rooks at the 5:13 mark. The Lady Tigers eventually took a 12-2 advantage with Massie knocking down a 3-pointer, Perie converting a three-point play and Rooks draining a jumper with 1:54 left in the opening quarter. Massie finished with 13 points, and Perie tallied seven points and 10 rebounds.
After five consecutive points by the Lady Panthers, it was Rooks who gave the fans in attendance a preview of what would eventually come, sinking a 3-pointer at the buzzer just from the midway point of the court, giving MHS an eight-point lead after eight minutes.
For all their success in the first quarter, the second quarter was opposite for the Lady Tigers as they shot the ball less than 10 times, lost a double-digit lead and trailed at the halftime buzzer by three points. MT outscored MHS, 17-6 for a lead of 24-21.
In the second, MT went on a 10-2 run, cutting the MHS advantage to 19-18 with buckets from Kristin Reisinger, Deidre McKay, Abby Schwenk, and Josie Cobb as Cobb sank a wide-open 3-pointer from the corner of the court with 3:06 left in the quarter.
McKay led all scorers with 16 points, and Cobb finished with 10 points. Schwenk added eight.
After a free throw by Kate Crabtree (who totaled 10 points), the Lady Panthers tied the game at 20 with points underneath the hoop from Schwenk, erasing what was a 10-point MHS lead with 1:53 left in the first half.
Two baskets in the final 1:25 by McKay put MT ahead by three points at the half.
If the first quarter was won by the Lady Tigers and MT prevailed in the second … the third was pretty much a draw on the offensive and defensive side of the court, as MHS outscored the host team 7-6, trailing by two points (30-28) after three quarters.
In the second half, the Lady Tigers switched their defense from man-to-man to a couple different zone looks, keeping MT to unofficially at 29 percent from the field in the second half.
"Several of our coaches have scouted Miami Trace and had talked about how they were struggling some with their perimeter shooting," Overstake said. "We had that in the back of our mind. We wanted to play man as much as possible, but we came out in the second half and decided to change things up.
"(Miami Trace) still got to their shooters and still scored points. We still didn't do a real good job of it, but it did keep Sammy out on the floor and kept others out of foul trouble, even though they got to the bonus before we did."
The score was tied twice in the third (seven times in the game) at 26 and 28. Perie was first to tie the game at 26 with a free-throw at the midway mark of the quarter. McKay came back and tied the game, after two free throws by Crabtree lifted MHS into the lead, with 1:47 left in the third. Reisinger put MT back on top with a jumper.
In the final frame, the score was tied at 30, 32, 34 and at 40 with no time left in regulation, as it was McClain who made the score tied each time in the fourth.
Brittany Mullikin was first to tie the score in the fourth at 30, and again at 32 with 6:12 left in the quarter. After Ariana Mabra put MT back in the lead, Taylor Faulconer tied the score at 34, powering her way to the hoop with 4:16 on the clock.
The next time MHS chipped away with a free throw by Mullikin, and a put-back basket from Crabtree lifted MHS into the lead at 37-36. MT regained the lead at 40-37, leaving 33 seconds on the clock, which was enough time for Rooks to send the game into overtime with her second 3-pointer of the game.
MT opened the overtime period (which is 4:00) with a 3-pointer by Cobb, but Rooks was there with a jumper. After MT was charged with a travel, Crabtree scored two points in the paint while under defensive pressure. Perie followed with a free throw, putting MHS up 45-43 with 1:33 left in OT. The lead went to 46-43 after Massie made 1-of-2 from the free-throw line.
Following turnovers, free throws and a jumper by the Lady Panthers the score stood tied at 47 with 29 seconds on the clock, which led to the jumper by Rooks to win the game.
The Lady Tigers will have a few days to prepare for their next game, as they will travel to face the Hillsboro Lady Indians on Wednesday, Jan. 18 in a SCOL contest. In their first meeting this season, MHS defeated HHS 53-21 at MHS.
MT will play their next SCOL game on Wednesday, Jan. 18 at Washington. Their game scheduled for Sunday in the Pickerington Shootout against Alexander has been cancelled.
GAME NOTES: MT was 8-of-10 from the free-throw line … MT committed 16 fouls … MT totaled 17 rebounds, eight steals and three assists … MT had 17 turnovers … MHS had 21 rebounds (six offensive) … MHS totaled one block (Crabtree), four steals, 17 turnovers and four assists (Perie).
BOX SCORE
SCORE BY QUARTERS
MHS 15 06 07 12 09 — 49
MT 07 17 06 10 07 — 47
INDIVIDUAL STATS
MHS (49)
S.Rooks 4 (2) 0-0 14
T.Faulconer 1 (0) 0-1 2
S.Massie 4 (1) 2-4 13
K.Crabtree 3 (0) 4-6 10
B.Mullikin 1 (0) 1-2 3
J.Perie 2 (0) 3-5 7
TOTALS: 15 (3) 10-18 49
MT (47)
J.Cobb 1 (2) 2-2 10
D.McKay 7 (0) 2-4 16
T.Smith 1 (1) 0-0 5
A.Mabra 2 (0) 0-0 4
A.Schwenk 2 (0) 4-4 8
K.Reisinger 2 (0) 0-0 4
TOTALS: 15 (3) 8-10 47