LUCAS — Their long-range shots weren’t falling Friday night, so Lucas attacked the basket.
Brian Sauder scored eight of his team-high 13 points in the fourth quarter as the Cubs completed a season sweep of Mansfield Christian with a 51-42 win at the Cub Cave.
The 5-foot-9 Sauder did all of his fourth-quarter damage from point-blank range. He had three driving layups and scored his fourth bucket of the period on a putback.
“We’re all slashers. We can all get to the rim,” Sauder said. “It helps space out the floor and … open up the lane.
“In years past it’s been a couple of ball handlers. It’s nice to have five guards who can handle the ball and handle the pressure.”
Unlike Tuesday’s win at Crestview, Lucas (8-2, 4-2 Mid-Buckeye Conference) struggled from beyond the 3-point arc against the Flames (8-5, 1-4). The Cubs connected on just one trey Friday night, but it came at a critical time. Jeb Grover’s triple with 3:40 remaining in the fourth quarter gave Lucas a 40-34 lead.
“We made one 3-pointer tonight, but you’ve got to be happy with the win against a solid team,” Lucas coach Taylor Iceman said. “We shot 20 free throws, which was great. We’re attacking.
“If you’re not making jump shots, you’ve got to go to the rim.”
The Cubs raced to a 12-7 lead after the first quarter, but were outscored 10-4 in the second. Jared McPeek scored seven second-quarter points and assisted on Ethan DeLaney’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer, giving the Flames a 17-16 halftime lead.
“We didn’t start out very well, but we thought our kids fought back real well,” MCS coach John Kurtz said. “The most disappointing fact for me was we ended up missing some shots late that I just thought we should have made.
“Some of it is their defense, but when you get to the rim you should make shots.”
McPeek led the Flames with 25 points. Kyle Kurtz added 11 despite battling foul trouble all evening.
“(McPeek) always gives us fits. He’s a good player and a great kid,” Iceman said. “You’ve got to know where (Kurtz) is at. He’s one of the best shooters around.
“With McPeek attacking, that makes it tough. We were good at times and not so good at times.”
Jeb Grover and Logan Niswander scored 11 points apiece for the Cubs.
“They just don’t make a lot of mistakes with the ball and they do a good job of covering up for their lack of size,” Kurtz said of the Cubs. “Defensively, we were pretty good for most of the game but late in the fourth we gave up some stuff that typically we wouldn’t give up.
“This is a long season and these games you’ve got to grow from.”
