A Moment in Time: Remembering Mansfield Senior’s 2005 Final Four run

MANSFIELD — Jon Avery can still hear the echoes, even after all these years.

What Avery and his Mansfield Senior teammates accomplished 20 years ago in March has reverberated through time.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Senior High’s last trip to the Final Four — a month-long thrill-ride still revered in city basketball circles. The undersized yet scrappy Tygers traded blows with some of the state’s most prized recruits during a Golden Age of Ohio high school basketball.

For Avery, the team’s undisputed leader and a third-team All-Ohioan that year, it seems like yesterday.

“I can’t believe it has been 20 years,” said Avery, who lives in Indianapolis with wife, Tanika, and two children, 6-year-old son Jon and 3-year-old daughter Jersey. “That was a special team and a special time.

“Growing up, I always wanted to be a Tyger. Having the opportunity to put our mark on the program, it was a dream come true.”

‘The Standard is the Standard’

Expectations are always high at Mansfield Senior.

The community not only expects a winner, city basketball aficionados insist the Tygers play the game with a certain grit and tenacity.

The players know it. The coaches know it.

“That’s Tyger basketball,” current Senior High coach and former great Marquis Sykes said. “The standard is the standard.”

Unofficially, Mansfield Senior is the fourth winningest program in Ohio. The Tygers are one of just a handful of schools across the state with more than 1,600 all-time victories.

For all their winning, however, success at the state level has been difficult to come by. 

Ohio’s high school state championship has been determined by a tournament winner since 1909, according to Ohio High School Athletic Association historian Timothy Hudak.

The state tournament was called the Inter-High School Basketball Series in those early years, but would come to be known as the Delaware Tournament because it was sponsored by and played at Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware. Hudak’s research found that Mansfield won the first Delaware Tournament in 1909.

That 1908-09 team is the only state champion in school history. It compiled a 13-3 record and dismantled opponents by an average score of 45-14.

Senior forward Edward Palmer was the captain and leading scorer at 16.0 points per game, while senior center Martin Jelliff contributed 13.2 points. Mansfield won the North-West championship and earned an invitation to the Central Ohio Tournamentat Delaware.

The Tygers were the class of the seven-team event, dumping London and Delaware before earning a 14-9 title decision over Plain City in front of 2,000 fans.

The OHSAA assumed control of the state tournament in 1923, but the event didn’t look anything like the one Mansfield Senior qualified for in 2005.

The early tournament was divided into two enrollment classes with the bigger schools slotting into Class A and small schools in Class B.

The OHSAA state tournament in the early years included the final eight or 16 teams in each class, depending on the year. Mansfield Senior qualified for the state tournament in 1927, 1938 and 1939, but never reached the semifinals.

Senior High’s first Final Four appearance came under Vern Hoffman in 1950. The Tygers, led by the late Ken McCally, lost to Springfield 60-48 in the Class A semifinals.

It would be 35 years before Mansfield Senior would reach the Final Four again. The Joe Prats-led 1985 Tygers reached the Class AAA state final but fell to Cincinnati Purcell Marian 65-57. That team included city legends Tyrone Buck, Tim Harless, Bubba Toddie and Ahmed Kent.

Prats guided the program to the regional championship in 1988 with Senior High scoring king Dapreis Owens leading the way. In 1990, the consolidation of Senior High and Malabar yielded a regional runner-up squad with former Malabar standout Punchy Carmichael spearheading the run.

Prats stepped aside after the 1992-93 season and was replaced by former Malabar coach Ron Hetler, who piloted the program for three seasons. Hetler was succeeded by Gregg Collins in 1996 after Collins’ wildly successful seven-year run at Lexington, which included Division II state titles in 1989 and 1991.

The Tygers were eliminated at the district level in each of Collins’ first two seasons before roaring to the Division I state semifinals in 1999. A senior, Sykes was the squad’s catalyst and a second-team All-Ohioan.

Senior High reached the regional final the following year with Sykes’ cousin and third-team All-Ohioan Ricky Minard and high-flying Herman Davis at the helm.

Minard later joined Sykes at Division I Morehead State in Kentucky, where the former became the program’s all-time leading scorer and the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year before being selected by the Sacramento Kings in the second round of the 2004 NBA Draft. Minard spent more than a decade playing professionally in Europe.

The Tygers returned to the Sweet 16 in 2002 thanks in large part to seniors Terrence Davison and Wayne Merriweather, along with junior Antonio Graves. Graves enjoyed a brilliant collegiate career at Pitt and a long professional career, including a stint with the Canton Charge of what is today called the G League. 

Avery was a freshman on the 2002 team and, two years later, joined forces with senior Yima Chia-Kur to lead the Tygers to the 2004 regional semifinals. Avery scored the game-winning bucket off a Chia-Kur assist in the waning seconds of a 46-44 win over Lima Senior in the district championship game at Bowling Green’s Anderson Arena.

“That (2004) team was the one a lot of people thought would make a state run,” Avery said.

It wasn’t to be, however, as Senior High fell to Olmsted Falls in the Sweet 16 in the Toledo regional. Chia-Kur graduated that spring and eventually played Division I basketball at Arkansas State before embarking on a pro career overseas.

With Avery heading into his senior season and a talented group of rising juniors — including Shabby Reed, Javario Byrd and Mel Sutton — picking up valuable varsity minutes as sophomores, expectations were again high in 2004-05.

Back To Earth

Those expectations were tempered on opening night when the new-look Tygers fell to Cincinnati Princeton in a neutral-site game in Columbus.

Senior Derrick Boyd scored a team-high 16 points in his first career start. Boyd and fellow starting senior guard Martel Young both played junior varsity as juniors, as did the fourth member of Senior High’s four-man 2005 senior class, Michael Newbern.

“Both of those guards and Mike were JV players as juniors and they really worked hard during the off-season and into the summer,” said Collins, the Associated Press Division I Coach of the Year in 2005 and a 2024 Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame inductee.

“I remember following them in AAU in the spring and they just started to get more and more confident.”

Avery was entering his third varsity season as a starter. Everyone in Brown and Orange followed the rangy 6-foot-5 center’s lead.

“Jon certainly was our leader,” Collins said. “When you can get your best player to be your hardest worker throughout the entire year, not just in-season, it’s such an advantage.

“There’s no question that Jon Avery worked the hardest throughout the season and into AAU and in the summer with us. He was very focused all the time.”

What’s more, Avery’s work ethic rubbed off on his teammates.

“Of all the teams that I was a part of coaching with Coach Collins, that was probably the hardest-working team that we had,” said longtime Collins assistant Effie James, who would lead the program for four season after Collins’ departure in 2008.

“We had a bunch of talented teams, but that was the hardest-working team. Those other seniors were playing JV as juniors and they came in as seniors and were a big part of that team.”

Gaining Momentum

Mansfield Senior followed the opening-night loss to Princeton with a workmanlike 63-55 victory over Columbus Independence.

Six straight double-digit victories followed before the Tygers held off a talented Madison team for a 54-49 victory. The Rams pushed the Tygers again a month later inside Madison’s Wayne E. Miller Gymnasium. Mansfield Senior rallied for a 75-69 win, overcoming a 43-31 halftime deficit. By then, Senior High’s winning streak was at 16 games.

What’s more, Mansfield Senior’s ultra-athletic junior class, which also included Le’Aunte Carter, had grown increasingly comfortable in its expanded role.

“I remember one game, I think against Ashland, and they had us on the ropes. Gregg put in all underclassmen with Jon Avery and those guys brought us back,” James said. “That mix of super-talented underclassmen and savvy seniors, it was a great combination.”

Mansfield Senior won its final three regular season games and stormed into the postseason with a 19-1 record. The Tygers were ranked eighth in the final Associated Press state poll and earned the top seed at the Willard sectional.

Road To The Final Four

Senior High opened tournament play with a 64-47 win over Ashland in the sectional finals. Avery led the way with 21 points on a perfect 8-for-8 shooting, par for the course for the career 70-percent field goal shooter. Sutton added 12 points.

Avery was at it again in a 70-53 win over Tiffin Columbian in the district semifinals, knocking down 8-of-10 field goals for 17 points. Byrd scored a game-high 20.

That set up a rematch with Lima Senior in the district final at Ohio Northern. The ninth-ranked Spartans (19-3) were led by Michigan State recruit Travis Walton, eventual Division I guard Dathan Lyles (Cal State-Northridge) and 6-foot-9 senior center Keith Jackson, who played junior college ball in Illinois before landing at Division II Ohio Dominican.

The game was tied 20-20 at the half before Sutton and Avery joined forces to change the complexion of the contest early in the third. Sutton attacked the basket from near the top of the key and spun past Walton before spotting Avery running alone along the baseline. Sutton underhanded a pass to Avery, who threw down a thunderous reverse dunk with his right hand that ignited the Senior High student section and triggered a 9-0 burst that altered the game.

Avery sprinted to the other end of the floor and blocked a Lyles shot as the temperature in the building continued to rise. Senior High’s Martel Young hit a pair of free throws, then Reed connected on a 3-pointer after a scrambling sequence that included an offensive rebound by Avery to give Senior High a 29-22 advantage. A layup by Byrd off a Reed assist pushed the lead to 31-22. 

The Tygers forged a 37-30 advantage after the third period and outscored the Spartans 26-16 in the fourth for a resounding 63-46 win.

“We punched Lima Senior in the face,” Avery said. “We weren’t going to let it get to a last-second shot like it did the year before.”

Avery scored a team-high 14 points to go with 11 rebounds, while Byrd scored a dozen. Sutton had 11 points and six boards and Boyd added 10.

The Division I Northwest District Player of the Year and an All-Ohio first-teamer, Walton managed just 13 points. He was 6-of-16 from the floor.

“Besides Jon, we didn’t have a lot of size, but we were athletic,” Collins said. “The Lima Senior game, I thought Jon and Mel really took it over. 

“They had an outstanding guard who was going to Michigan State and Mel just shut him down.”

The win sent the Tygers into the Toledo Regional at Savage Hall against Lakewood St. Edward and Avery put on a show. Matched up against talented 6-foot-7 freshman Delvon Roe, who eventually joined Walton at Michigan State, Avery scored a career-high 29 points on 14-for-18 shooting and had a handful of highlight-reel dunks. 

Senior High scored 24 points off 18 St. Ed’s turnovers, grabbed 20 offensive rebounds that led to a 31-14 advantage in second-chance points and connected on 24-of-26 free throws. Reed backed Avery with 22 points, while Byrd was a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line on his way to 13 points.

It all added up to a 76-55 blowout, but the regional final would follow a far different script.

One Shining Moment

The win over St. Edward sent Mansfield Senior into the Elite Eight for the first time since 2000, where fourth-ranked Solon awaited. The Comets were led by imposing 6-foot-9 sophomore center and Ohio State recruit Dallas Lauderdale.

It looked like the end of the road as the Tygers trailed 35-23 midway through the third period and 41-32 going to the fourth. Senior High cut the deficit to 41-39 on a Byrd layup with 6:10 left, but the Comets responded with an 8-0 run and opened a 49-39 bulge with 4:16 to play.

The final four minutes live rent-free in the heads of Mansfield Senior fans.

Byrd jump-started Senior High’s stunning comeback with a mid-range jumper and, after a Sutton steal, Avery’s layup off a Reed assist cut it to 49-43. The Eagles committed back-to-back turnovers and Boyd’s triple with 1:29 remaining sliced the gap to 49-46.

“There was a sequence of plays that helped us get back in it,” Reed said. “It was crazy.” 

A pair of Solon free throws temporarily stemmed the tide, but Reed stunned the Savage Hall crowd with a four-point play. He was fouled as he made a trey and converted the free throw to make it 51-50 with less than a minute remaining.

A Lauderdale free throw with 13 seconds left pushed it 52-50, but he misfired on his second attempt and Boyd grabbed the rebound. Senior High raced up the floor and the ball eventually found its way back to Boyd, the unheralded senior who epitomized what it meant to be a Tyger.

Boyd launched a 3-pointer as Solon’s Steve Valentino slammed into him. The two tumbled to the floor as Boyd’s impossibly high-arcing shot fell from the Savage Hall rafters and ripped the net, sending the Mansfield Senior faithful into a full-throated frenzy.

Miraculously, the Tygers also had an opportunity for a second four-point play in the final minute as Boyd was fouled on the shot.

“I’ll never forget that shot, but not just the shot,” Avery said. “What I will always remember is all the work that went into getting to that moment, for Derrick and the team. 

“For Derrick to have that moment … he’s the one who should have hit that shot.”

Boyd missed the ensuing free throw and Solon grabbed the rebound and quickly called timeout. Senior High was clinging to a 53-52 lead and Savage Hall was roaring.

“Solon had the ball side-out with about four seconds left and we knew they were going to throw it in to Dallas Lauderdale, but what do you do?” Collins asked. “We put Mel in front of him and Jon behind him … and kept our fingers crossed.”

Lauderdale never got the ball, however, as the Comets turned it over as time expired. Senior High was headed to the Final Four for the first time since 1999 thanks to one of the most improbable — and scintillating — comebacks in the program’s long and storied history.

“I can remember seeing my grandfather in the crowd. He used to wear these thick sweaters all the time, but he was in a T-shirt,” Avery said. “I never saw him wear a T-shirt at home. I found out later he was overheated with the emotion of that game.”

Avery’s grandfather, Aaron Butts, passed away in 2020.

“In the 20 years since then, so many loved ones and family members who were at that game have passed on,” Avery said, his voice trailing off. “It brings back so many cherished memories.”

Community Support

The city traveled en force to Toledo and was rewarded for its effort. It’s a level of support that would go unmatched until Senior High’s 2019 football team reached the state championship game at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton.

“One thing that stands out to me was the tremendous school and community spirit for that team. That meant a lot to those kids,” James said. “The city and the community really rallied around those kids and they responded to that community engagement and buy-in.”

The support extended well beyond the city limits. Fans from all across north central Ohio joined in the celebration — except for those supporters who gave up on the Tygers a little too early on that fateful Saturday night in Toledo.

Longtime Collins friend and legendary Lexington tennis coach Ron Schaub was among them.

“As we’re traveling back after that game, I gave Ron a call,” said Collins, who played tennis collegiately at Otterbein before embarking on his Hall of Fame basketball coaching career. “Ron had left early and was in his car on his way home. He was giving me condolences. He said, ‘Hey, you had a great season and there’s nothing to hang your head about.’ I just went along with it. 

“He didn’t find out we won until the next day when someone told him at Lakewood Racquet Club.”

End of the Road

Senior High faced No. 1-ranked Canton McKinley and junior All-Ohio second-teamer Raymar Morgan, another of Tom Izzo’s Michigan State recruits, in the state semifinals.

The Tygers trailed 41-26 at the break but outscored the Bulldogs 17-11 in the third quarter and trailed 52-43 going to the fourth.

Le’Aunte Carter’s 3-pointer with 1:43 remaining cut McKinley’s lead to 65-60, but the Bulldogs closed on an 8-1 run for a 73-61 win. McKinley, coached by Shelby native Dave Hoover, won the state title the following evening with a 51-42 victory over Cincinnati St. Xavier in the final.

The Bulldogs won their second straight state championship a year later.

Mansfield Senior returned to the regional the following year, but fell to Toledo St. John’s in the semifinals at Savage Hall. The loss capped a remarkable eight-year stretch that included six district titles.

Senior High has won just one district championship since, reaching the regional championship game in 2014. The Tygers fell to nationally-ranked Lakewood St. Edward. The Eagles would win the state championship the following week.

After

After a year at a prep school in Cincinnati, Avery went on to a sensational collegiate career at Division I IUPUI in Indianapolis.

He is the program’s career, single-season and single-game leader in field goal percentage and is one of just a handful of Jaguars to score 1,000 points and grab 500 rebounds in a career. He graduated in 2010.

“I remember going into the basketball office the day after I graduated and there was a hand-written note from Coach Collins waiting for me there. I’ll never forget that,” Avery said. “I don’t think we understood how much he cared for his players.”

Avery enjoyed a lengthy pro career in Lebanon, Mexico and Chile before settling down and getting into coaching.

He currently coaches the 17U Indiana Heat in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, one of the premier summer circuits in the country.

“I just had a kid named to the McDonald’s All-American team who I was fortunate enough to coach, and so many other kids who are playing high-major and Division I basketball,” Avery said. “I’m still involved in the game, just from a different aspect.”

Avery is a regional manager for an automotive finance company and the lessons he learned at Mansfield Senior have served him well.

“I was fortunate enough to have great coaches, not just with Coach Collins, but with Jeff McCoy and Effie James,” Avery said. “They taught us the values of being on time and being able to communicate, which is a lost art. All those things translated from the basketball court for me.

“I was in that Solon game when we were down and faced adversity. When something goes awry at work, I’ll tell myself, ‘This isn’t that bad. We can figure this out.’ ”

After earning a spot on the All-Ohio first team in 2006, Reed played two seasons at Vincennes University in Indiana before signing with Division I Indiana State. When he graduated in 2010, he was one of the program’s career and single-season leaders in 3-point field goals.

Reed’s son, Rashad Reed Jr., is a junior sharpshooter and three-year letterman at Mansfield Senior.

“It doesn’t feel like it’s been 20 years since that run, but now I’m coming here to watch my son play and he’s a junior. That’s when I know it’s been 20 years,” Reed said. “I’ve been trying to tell my son he’s got to live in the moment because it goes by so fast. 

“Every time you step on that floor, you’ve got to take advantage of it. Time flies so you can’t take anything for granted.”