MANSFIELD, Ohio — Naradain James made only one shot Friday night, but it was a big one.
Saddled with foul trouble all evening long, James connected on a 3-pointer with 1:43 to play as the Mansfield Senior Tygers rallied for a 56-50 win over the Lexington Minuetemen at Pete Henry Gym.
James, who came in averaging 19.9 points a game, attempted just three shots and scored a season-low four points. His trey from the right wing off an Asante’ Wilder assist gave the Tygers (11-6, 8-3 Ohio Cardinal Conference) their first and only lead of the evening.
“He’s known for that,” junior guard Marion Young said. “Mr. Clutch, that’s what we call him in practice.”
It was James who buried a trey in overtime to beat the Minutemen 54-52 back on Jan. 9. The rangy 6-foot-5 swingman transferred to Senior High from Lexington after his freshman year.
With James on the bench, the Tygers sleep-walked through the first three quarters. Lexington (10-9, 5-6) led by as many as eight points in the first half and took a 42-36 lead to the fourth, only to be outscored 20-8 in the final period.
“Coach said to bring a spark and we brought it,” Young said. “We took that to heart and came out here and played.”
Picking Up the Slack: Young was Senior High’s go-to guy in James’ absence. He scored 17 of his 22 points in the second half, including a dozen in the third quarter.
“[James] told me to take over for him because he couldn’t do it,” Young said. “I took the game in my hands.”
Reserve guard Raheem Clark came off the bench to score 11 points.
“When your leader doesn’t have an astounding statistical game and you can still pull out a victory versus a rival, that shows signs of a good team,” Senior High coach J.T. Reese said. “They should be proud of that.”
Flatline: Senior High play an uninspired first half. The Tygers connected on only 6 of 22 field goals, turned the ball over six times and managed just 21 first-half points.
“Our defensive pressure is predicated on whether or not the ball is going through the basket,” Reese said. “Maybe we’re not the defensive pressure team I thought we were.”
The Tygers had no answer for Jonah Yaussy. The physical power forward scored 28 points on 11 of 16 shooting and drew seven fouls.
“This is the third or fourth time we’ve given up (about) 30 points to one guy,” Reese said. “We got lucky tonight to pull the victory out.”
Charlie Keller backed Yaussy with 10 points.
Charity Stripe: When not much else was working offensively, the Tygers attacked the rim. Senior High attempted 29 free throws, cashing in on 22.
“A lot of defensive deficiencies can be made by making some free throws,” Reese said. “If we don’t make 22, we don’t win.”
Junior Varsity: Christian Haney scored 19 points and Jornell Mans added 14 as the Tygers rallied for a 55-52 win in junior varsity action. Paul Hogsette led Lex with 15, while Tony Gerrell added 11.
