MANSFIELD — Marquez Cobb posed for a few photos with family and friends in the commons at Mansfield Senior High School, a look of disbelief slowly creeping across his youthful face.
“I remember walking through those doors for the first time my freshman year,” Cobb said as he motioned to the front entrance of the building. “I was thinking, ‘Is this college? I couldn’t believe how big this place seemed back then.
“It doesn’t seem quite so big anymore.”
Cobb was one of eight seniors to play his final home game at Pete Henry Gym on Friday. The talented senior class went out in style, dumping West Holmes 61-53 to clinch at least a share of the Ohio Cardinal Conference championship.
“These last four years have flown by,” Cobb said, shaking his head. “I can’t believe its over.”
The Tygers (15-3, 11-2) have now won or shared a piece of the league title in nine of the 11 years the conference has been in existence. What’s more, the seniors were a combined 37-4 at home during their four years.
“It went by so fast,” said senior Donovyn Benson, the newly-crowned District 6 Player of the Year in Division I. “I can remember everything like it happened yesterday. It’s kind of sad, but it’s exciting at the same time. We’re all moving on to the next chapter of our lives.”
“We grew up together on this floor. It was kind of hard to block all that out, but we had a job to do and we were able to take care of business.”
The Tygers led the Knights (16-5, 10-3) 14-12 after the first quarter and 29-27 at halftime before extending their advantage in the second half. Jalen Reese drained a 3-pointer to give Senior High a 32-27 advantage early in the third quarter. After connecting on just 2 of 10 first-half 3-pointers, the Tygers sank 4 of 6 from beyond the arc in the second half.
“To be down two at halftime, I thought we played well in the first half,” West Holmes coach Keith Troyer said. “I thought we played well in the second half, but they hit some shots. They hit shots and we didn’t and that’s what it kind of came down to.”
Mansfield Senior led 42-37 after three quarters and extended its advantage to 45-37 early in the fourth on a Cobb 3-pointer with 7:41 remaining. Cobb’s trey sparked a 16-6 Senior High run as the lead ballooned to 61-43 on Reese’s second and final trey of the evening with 2:26 to go. Mansfield Senior misfired on the front end of three one-and-one situations in the final minute, allowing the Knights to close the contest on a 10-0 run, but the damage had already been done.
“To win another conference championship feels pretty good,” said Benson, who led the Tygers with 16 points and 11 rebounds. “We held it down for another year.”
Reese backed Benson with 14 points and five rebounds. Cobb added nine points and five boards, while Malon Samuel and DeJorr Gibson each had six points.
Brady Arnold, West Holmes’ high-scoring senior and a longtime thorn in the Tygers’ side, scored a game-high 26 points on 9 of 20 shooting. He had five rebounds and three assists and never left the floor.
“We’re a different team than he is going to face all year,” Mansfield Senior coach J.T. Reese said. “When they set ball screens, we can switch them with our guys and I feel very comfortable with anybody on our team guarding him.
“He played all 32 minutes and I bet he’s tired as a dog because when he comes off the ball screens there is still somebody in his face.”
Josh Neer added 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Knights. Scotty Troyer had eight points.
In junior varsity action, Mansfield Senior raced out to a 27-9 first-quarter lead and cruised to a 78-49 win. Mario Young led the way with 16 points, while Raheem Clark added 15. Marshall Levins had 11 points and six rebounds.
The Tygers can clinch the OCC title outright with a win next Friday at Clear Fork. Before then, Senior High travels to Dayton Dunbar today and visits Lima Senior on Tuesday. The Tygers close out the regular season at Massillon Washington next Saturday.
Not even the specter of four straight road games to close the season could dampen spirts Friday.
“This really was an emotional night,” Cobb said. “I’ve played with a lot of these guys since the fifth or sixth grade. It was emotional, but a lot of fun, too.
“And to win a conference championship, it was definitely the icing on the cake.”
Follow Curt Conrad on Twitter @curtjconrad.
