LEXINGTON, Ohio — The opening minutes have been kind to the Minutemen during their run to this week’s regional tournament.
No. 6 Lexington (24-2) is in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2008 thanks largely to its overwhelming first-half performances in four postseason wins.
In its tournament opener against Clyde, Lex led 12-6 after the first quarter but outscored the Fliers 15-0 in the second quarter for a 27-6 halftime lead and sailed to a 66-35 victory.
Against Madison in the district semifinals, the Minutemen raced to a 19-7 lead after the first quarter. The Rams played even the rest of the way in Lexington’s 58-46 victory.
Perhaps Lexington’s most impressive showing of the season came in last week’s 74-52 win over Sandusky in the district championship game. The Minutemen led the Blue Streaks 13-3 four minutes into the game and 24-9 after the first quarter.
“That has been our game plan all along,” point guard Joey Zahn said Saturday. “We want to come out and put pressure on the other team.
“Getting out to a big lead helps us relax a little bit. Sometimes we relax a little too much and let teams back in the game, but I’d rather be ahead by 10 than behind by 10.”
Another fast start would certainly help when the Minutemen open regional play at 6:15 p.m. Thursday at Bowling Green State University’s Stroh Center. Next up for Lex is a date with northwest Ohio heavyweight Ottawa-Glandorf (20-5). The Titans knocked off 2015 Division II state champ Defiance 46-43 in the Ohio Northern district final last weekend.
No. 10 Napoleon (19-5) meets Bay Village Bay (22-3) in the Thursday’s nightcap. The winners return to BGSU for the regional title game and a berth in the Final Four on Saturday at a time to be determined.
Senior Jonah Yaussy was virtually unstoppable in the first quarter of each of Lexington’s district wins. The 6-foot-5 forward scored nine of his 16 points on 4 of 5 shooting in the opening period against Madison and had eight of his career-high 33 points in the first quarter against Sandusky.
“We want to come out and establish our inside game,” Yaussy said. “We feel if we do that, it opens things up on the perimeter.”
Like Lex, Ottawa-Glandorf got off to a fast start in its district championship win. The Titans outscored Defiance 9-3 in the opening three minutes.
“The first three minutes were going to be important,” O-G coach Tyson McGlaughlin said. “We wanted to get out there and get off to a good start.”
The undersized Titans will have their hands full with Yaussy and 6-foot-5 freshman Cade Stover. The duo combined for 28 rebounds as the Minutemen outboarded Sandusky 50-27.
“Me and Jonah were told that every rebound that came off the glass was ours,” Stover said. “We had to limit Sandusky’s opportunities by limiting them to one shot.”
A win Thursday would send Lex to its first regional championship game since 2008, when the Minutemen fell to eventual state runner-up Toledo Libbey.
“We’re looking forward to playing in the regional at BG,” Yaussy said. “We’ll prepare the best we can and get ready to play.”
