Lions' rally not enough, ousted by Greyhounds
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
LUCASVILLE — Once the Fairfield Lions lost the lead in the second quarter, they were able to get close the Manchester Greyhounds … but not close enough.
FHS cut their lead to within three points in the final 20 seconds, but that wasn't enough, as they fell in their Division IV SE District Sectional final to Manchester, 69-65, Tuesday at Valley High School in Lucasville.
This being the rubber match of their season rivalry, the Greyhounds not only won the season series 2-1 but kept the Lions out of the district round of the postseason for the first time in three years.
"We showed the same thing … they showed they were resilient," Fairfield head coach Matt Carson said. "We knew they weren't going to give up, and they didn't do that tonight.
"Can I say this is the most we've executed a game plan (Tuesday) … no, I can't say that. But I can say it is the same it has been all 21 games … they don't quit, they do what I ask of them. It is just plain and simple, we have to get better at defense."
Though they came out on the lower side of the scoreboard, the Lions (who were the away team) began the game with a lightning-quick pace, outscoring the Greyhounds 17-13 after eight minutes.
In that quarter, the Lions opened with the first points of the game, a 3-pointer by Austin May, and following points by the Greyhounds, it was May again, this time sinking a jumper for a 5-2 FHS lead.
After the quarter was tied at five, the Lions went on a run of eight straight points as Greyhound leader Travis Combs tallied two fouls early in the quarter, and the Lions took advantage of him being away from the court.
Combs led all scorers with a game-high 31 points.
The 8-0 run in a span of just over 2:00 came with four points by junior Quentin Williams, sophomore Blake Hildebrant and junior Brad Clay for the 13-5 advantage. Clay ended the game with 12 points, while Hildebrant scored 11.
Williams led the Lions with a team-high 21 points.
Manchester answered with six consecutive points, but again FHS scored four points in a row in a 20-second span for a lead of six points (17-11), leaving MHS time to score a layup by Dalton West for the five-point first-quarter lead.
Then it was the Greyhounds' turn to mount a scoring run, as they held the Lions in six points in the second quarter, allowing FHS to score just six points while taking a 34-23 lead at the half.
In the 21-6 second quarter, the Lions had no answer for Manchester, as FHS not only gave up the 20-plus points but had some troubles handling the basketball (which MHS took full advantage of), and they stopped the trip of Combs, Dylan Ricketts and West.
The trio of Greyhound players combined for the 21 points in the second, with Combs scoring eight points in the frame. Ricketts also added eight points in the quarter (two 3-pointers), and West sank a 3-pointer and a jumper for five points in the second.
For the game, Ricketts tallied 14 points, and West followed with 13.
"We weren't able to guard very well (Tuesday), and in tournament basketball, when you can guard you are going to be successful," Carson said. "That just wasn't the case for us (Tuesday).
"I think the biggest difference for us was their (MHS) shooting. They shot the ball a lot better than the first two times we played them. We also gave up three offensive rebounds in free-throw situations … and it seemed like they beat us on hustle plays."
In the third, the Lions got as close as seven points of tying the score with 3:29 left on the third-quarter clock, as teams answered one another's shots, but once the quarter ended, the Lions managed to cut five points off the Greyhounds' lead to 54-48.
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One of the bigger shots for the Lions in the third came with 4:22 on the clock when May knocked down a 3-pointer, cutting the MHS lead to single digits from 12 to nine points. Also in the third for FHS, Clay scored eight points, as did Williams, who led the Lions in scoring with 21 points.
Combs didn't back down in the third; in fact, it was his best quarter, scoring 13 of his 31 points in the eight minutes.
In the fourth, the Lions had one final rally left in them, starting with Blake Hildebrant draining a 3-pointer, cutting the Greyhounds' lead down to three points at 54-51.
Later in the fourth, May sank a 3-pointer for FHS, again making it a three-point game at 57-54 with 5:24 left in regulation.
With 3:32 remaining, following four straight points by the Greyhounds, Hildebrant made his second 3-pointer of the quarter, cutting the Manchester advantage to four points (61-57).
Again, after the Greyhounds added more points, the Lions didn't go away easily, as Williams kept FHS within striking distance with a 3-pointer, leaving 19.6 left on the clock.
That was all the Lions could do, though, with MHS running out the clock.
"(Tuesday) Manchester was just able to turn our turnovers into points for them," Carson said. "They were able to attack all the weaknesses in all of our defenses … all I can say is they out-executed us."
The Lions end the season at 11-10 overall, 7-6 in the SHL for a second-place finish in the Division II of the league.
Seniors playing their final game for FHS were Austin Hildebrant, Cole Putnam, Austin May and Wes Willey.
"They are four great individuals who established a lot of leadership for us this year," Carson said. "They left a lot of characteristics that I think we are going to be able to carry with this program. They are just four great kids.
"I hurt for them now because I wanted them to get to the Convo, but they know … we've talked about this a few times this year, how high school basketball is a small portion of their life they are going to remember forever. They are going to take a lot of things they learned here and will be successful people in the real world. They come from great families and are great people. I wish them all the best."
BOX SCORE
FHS 17 06 25 17 — 65
MHS 13 21 20 15 — 69
INDIVIDUAL STATS
MHS (69)
D.Walters 0 (0) 1-2 1
T.Combs 10 (2) 5-8 31
D.Ricketts 3 (2) 2-3 14
K.Adams 0 (0) 1-2 1
D.West 3 (2) 12 13
B.gif">fin 3 (0) 3-7 9
TOTALS: 19 (6) 13-24 69
FHS (65)
Q.Williams 3 (3) 6-9 21
A.May 1 (3) 0-0 11
B.Hildebrant 1 (2) 3-4 11
G.Montgomery 1 (0) 1-2 3
B.Clay 6 (0) 0-0 12
A.Hildebrant 2 (0) 0-0 4
C.Putnam 1 (0) 1-2 3
TOTALS: 15 (8) 11-17 65
FHS cut their lead to within three points in the final 20 seconds, but that wasn't enough, as they fell in their Division IV SE District Sectional final to Manchester, 69-65, Tuesday at Valley High School in Lucasville.
This being the rubber match of their season rivalry, the Greyhounds not only won the season series 2-1 but kept the Lions out of the district round of the postseason for the first time in three years.
"We showed the same thing … they showed they were resilient," Fairfield head coach Matt Carson said. "We knew they weren't going to give up, and they didn't do that tonight.
"Can I say this is the most we've executed a game plan (Tuesday) … no, I can't say that. But I can say it is the same it has been all 21 games … they don't quit, they do what I ask of them. It is just plain and simple, we have to get better at defense."
Though they came out on the lower side of the scoreboard, the Lions (who were the away team) began the game with a lightning-quick pace, outscoring the Greyhounds 17-13 after eight minutes.
In that quarter, the Lions opened with the first points of the game, a 3-pointer by Austin May, and following points by the Greyhounds, it was May again, this time sinking a jumper for a 5-2 FHS lead.
After the quarter was tied at five, the Lions went on a run of eight straight points as Greyhound leader Travis Combs tallied two fouls early in the quarter, and the Lions took advantage of him being away from the court.
Combs led all scorers with a game-high 31 points.
The 8-0 run in a span of just over 2:00 came with four points by junior Quentin Williams, sophomore Blake Hildebrant and junior Brad Clay for the 13-5 advantage. Clay ended the game with 12 points, while Hildebrant scored 11.
Williams led the Lions with a team-high 21 points.
Manchester answered with six consecutive points, but again FHS scored four points in a row in a 20-second span for a lead of six points (17-11), leaving MHS time to score a layup by Dalton West for the five-point first-quarter lead.
Then it was the Greyhounds' turn to mount a scoring run, as they held the Lions in six points in the second quarter, allowing FHS to score just six points while taking a 34-23 lead at the half.
In the 21-6 second quarter, the Lions had no answer for Manchester, as FHS not only gave up the 20-plus points but had some troubles handling the basketball (which MHS took full advantage of), and they stopped the trip of Combs, Dylan Ricketts and West.
The trio of Greyhound players combined for the 21 points in the second, with Combs scoring eight points in the frame. Ricketts also added eight points in the quarter (two 3-pointers), and West sank a 3-pointer and a jumper for five points in the second.
For the game, Ricketts tallied 14 points, and West followed with 13.
"We weren't able to guard very well (Tuesday), and in tournament basketball, when you can guard you are going to be successful," Carson said. "That just wasn't the case for us (Tuesday).
"I think the biggest difference for us was their (MHS) shooting. They shot the ball a lot better than the first two times we played them. We also gave up three offensive rebounds in free-throw situations … and it seemed like they beat us on hustle plays."
In the third, the Lions got as close as seven points of tying the score with 3:29 left on the third-quarter clock, as teams answered one another's shots, but once the quarter ended, the Lions managed to cut five points off the Greyhounds' lead to 54-48.
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One of the bigger shots for the Lions in the third came with 4:22 on the clock when May knocked down a 3-pointer, cutting the MHS lead to single digits from 12 to nine points. Also in the third for FHS, Clay scored eight points, as did Williams, who led the Lions in scoring with 21 points.
Combs didn't back down in the third; in fact, it was his best quarter, scoring 13 of his 31 points in the eight minutes.
In the fourth, the Lions had one final rally left in them, starting with Blake Hildebrant draining a 3-pointer, cutting the Greyhounds' lead down to three points at 54-51.
Later in the fourth, May sank a 3-pointer for FHS, again making it a three-point game at 57-54 with 5:24 left in regulation.
With 3:32 remaining, following four straight points by the Greyhounds, Hildebrant made his second 3-pointer of the quarter, cutting the Manchester advantage to four points (61-57).
Again, after the Greyhounds added more points, the Lions didn't go away easily, as Williams kept FHS within striking distance with a 3-pointer, leaving 19.6 left on the clock.
That was all the Lions could do, though, with MHS running out the clock.
"(Tuesday) Manchester was just able to turn our turnovers into points for them," Carson said. "They were able to attack all the weaknesses in all of our defenses … all I can say is they out-executed us."
The Lions end the season at 11-10 overall, 7-6 in the SHL for a second-place finish in the Division II of the league.
Seniors playing their final game for FHS were Austin Hildebrant, Cole Putnam, Austin May and Wes Willey.
"They are four great individuals who established a lot of leadership for us this year," Carson said. "They left a lot of characteristics that I think we are going to be able to carry with this program. They are just four great kids.
"I hurt for them now because I wanted them to get to the Convo, but they know … we've talked about this a few times this year, how high school basketball is a small portion of their life they are going to remember forever. They are going to take a lot of things they learned here and will be successful people in the real world. They come from great families and are great people. I wish them all the best."
BOX SCORE
FHS 17 06 25 17 — 65
MHS 13 21 20 15 — 69
INDIVIDUAL STATS
MHS (69)
D.Walters 0 (0) 1-2 1
T.Combs 10 (2) 5-8 31
D.Ricketts 3 (2) 2-3 14
K.Adams 0 (0) 1-2 1
D.West 3 (2) 12 13
B.gif">fin 3 (0) 3-7 9
TOTALS: 19 (6) 13-24 69
FHS (65)
Q.Williams 3 (3) 6-9 21
A.May 1 (3) 0-0 11
B.Hildebrant 1 (2) 3-4 11
G.Montgomery 1 (0) 1-2 3
B.Clay 6 (0) 0-0 12
A.Hildebrant 2 (0) 0-0 4
C.Putnam 1 (0) 1-2 3
TOTALS: 15 (8) 11-17 65