LEXINGTON — Freshman sensation Cade Stover made sure his senior teammates would not leave Lexington without a single career win against Wooster.
The 6-foot-4 post knocked in 21 points and pulled down 15 rebounds as the Minutemen (18-2, 10-2) took over sole possession of first place in the Ohio Cardinal Conference with a 64-61 win against the Generals (10-8, 9-3).
Despite a high-pressure night that included nine offensive rebounds and two clutch foul shots at the end, the Lexington coaching staff declined to call it Stover’s best game of the season.
“Just another night at the office for Cade,” assistant coach Jay Guth said.
Head coach Scott Hamilton agreed.
“He has put together quite a few (big games),” Hamilton said. “When he steps on the court, and it’s just the same way when he played football, Cade has one speed … all out. When you put that kind of effort into that kind of athletic body, great things happen.”
LEAD LOST, THEN RALLY
The Minutemen built a 20-6 lead in the second quarter, only to see Wooster trap and press all the way back to a 56-54 Generals’ lead with 3:56 remaining on a banked-in triple by sophomore Calvin Blair.
Lexington was pressured into seven turnovers in the third quarter alone as Wooster closed the period with a 13-2 run.
“I thought in the second half we played much better,” first-year Wooster Coach Michael Snowbarger said. “We decided to take the ball out of (Lexington senior guard) Joey Zahn’s hands. So we ran people at him and made him give it up.
“It worked, but we dug ourselves too big a hole in the first half. We expended a lot of energy during the comeback.”
It was Zahn’s triple with 1:58 left that regained the lead for Lex at 57-56, an edge the Minutemen would keep, despite hitting just 11 of 20 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. For the game, Lexington was just 20 of 32. Wooster was six of 11 at the stripe.
Perhaps the biggest free throws of the night came when senior post Jonah Yaussy hit two with 51 seconds left and Lexington clinging to a one-point lead. Yaussy had missed five of his first six FTs in the fourth quarter.
“I would fire my free throw shooting coach … but it’s me,” Hamilton said with a laugh. “We are shooting about 65 percent as a team this year. It’s just the guys missing tonight were the guys who are usually making them.
“Jonah’s a 72 percent free throw shooter, so (the misses) were a little strange,” Hamilton said. “When he was missing those shots, I felt like his senior leadership would eventually kick in.”
EDGE ON THE GLASS
The Minutemen dominated the Generals on the boards with a 45-27 rebounding edge, including 19-10 on the offensive glass. Yaussy had 11 rebounds to go with his 11 points. Lexington had a 13-9 edge in second-chance points.
“The last time we played them (a 69-66 Wooster win) they had 20 offensive rebounds,” Hamilton said. “We reminded our bigs, and our guards, about that this week.”
The rebounding edge helped Lexington overcome 21 turnovers, compared to just 14 for Wooster.
“We had 22 turnovers the first time against them. I think committing 21 turnovers tonight and still coming away with the win says a lot about these kids and the way they battled,” Hamilton said.
Snowbarger, whose roster has just three seniors, was also pleased with his team’s effort.
“We’re a young and developing team. I am proud of the way the kids battled back. We could have packed our bags after the first half. Lexington is a great team and that is what we want to get to.”
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Zahn finished with 18 points, including perfection on three triples and also seven of eight at the foul line. As a team, Lexington shot 43 percent from the field (20 of 47), including four of 11 behind the 3-point line.
Senior guard Nick Koontz led Wooster with 18 points while junior Peyton Bennington added 16 and Morgan finished with 11. The Generals shot 44 percent from the field (24 of 55), including seven of 24 triples.
Lexington can clinch an undisputed OCC title with wins the next two Fridays against host Orrville and visiting Mansfield Senior.
Wooster hosts Massilon Jackson tonight in a non-league game.
