MANSFIELD – Tim Mergel looked at the stat sheet Friday night and shook his head after his Madison Rams lost to cross-town rival Mansfield Senior, 72-59.
The number that jumped off the page was 27 turnovers, glaring mistakes against an overwhelming Tygers’ press that generated 25 points for the winners.
“That was like one of the old Mansfield Senior presses. At some point, you wanted to stop the game and see if they had six guys on the court,” Mergel said.
What was the biggest difference between the loss and the 68-61 win the Rams claimed against the Tygers in January?
“Their overall aggressiveness,” Mergel said. “I thought they played much harder tonight.”
The win set up a showdown for the Ohio Cardinal Conference next Friday night at Lexington. The Minutemen (19-2, 11-2) clinched at least a share of the title with a win at Orrville on Friday. Mansfield Senior is 10-6 overall and 10-3 in the league, tied for second with Wooster (11-8, 10-3).
Madison slipped to 11-9 and 8-5 in the league.
EXTREME PRESSURE
Mansfield Senior’s full-court zone trap simply stopped Madison in its tracks. The Rams committed 16 turnovers in the first half as Mansfield built a 36-28 edge. The heat actually racheted up in the third quarter when the Rams committed nine more turnovers as Mansfield Senior built a 60-39 lead going into the fourth.
Madison trimmed that deficit to nine late in the game, but Mansfield Senior hit 10 of 13 at the foul line in the fourth quarter to rebuild the lead.
Mansfield Senior coach J.T. Reese wavered when asked if it was the best Tygers press of the season.
“Yes … and no,” he said. “When you generate 27 turnovers, you’re doing something right. But we failed to convert at an alarming rate. We left so many points out there it’s ridiculous. We practiced hard all week and our mantra was to create turnovers and we did that.”
Senior Mario Young led Mansfield Senior with 23 points, six rebounds and seven assists. He was backed by 18 points and eight rebounds by fellow senior David Hall. Sophomore B.J. Patrick scored 19 for the winners.
“Mario is a great player and David Hall is very good. You know they are going to get their points. But when Patrick scores 19, you know you’re going to be in big trouble,” Mergel said.
Reese also praised Young’s efforts.
“Despite the fact we had some not clean plays, Mario got to the paint whenever he wanted and he was able to finish,” Reese said. “Our energy and effort was solid throughout the game. The game was called a little differently (than the loss at Madison) and we were at home.”
BAD MIDDLE
Madison was outscored 45-23 in the middle two quarters before mounting a rally in the fourth. The Rams outscored the Tygers 20-12 in the final eight minutes.
“(We) kept playing hard,” Mergel said. “When you play at the extra speed we saw tonight, you have to be able to gather yourself and finish. We didn’t do that tonight.”
Junior Tyrell Ajian led Madison with 23 points, but committed eight turnovers. Sophomore Kyle Jackson added 16. Senior Billy Buckley, Madison’s second-leading scorer this season, was in foul trouble early and finished with just four points and eight more turnovers.
Mansfield Senior shot 44 percent (23 of 52) from the field and added 22 of 31 at the foul line. The Rams shot 49 percent from the floor, but generated 13 fewer shots (19 of 39). Madison was 16 of 23 at the line. Madison had a 28-25 rebounding edge, led by eight from junior Jacob Koehler, but had 19 more turnovers (27-8).
UP NEXT
The Tygers host Olentangy tonight during Senior Night at Pete Henry Gym. Madison finishes the regular season next week at home, hosting Orrville on Friday and Willard on Saturday.
Reese said it’s not time to think about Lexington just yet.
“We have Olentangy (tonight) and Senior Night is big,” he said. “After that game is over, we will focus on Lexington. It will take a Herculean effort to win down there next weekend.”
