MANSFIELD, Ohio — Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good. On Saturday night, the St. Peter’s boys basketball team was both.
The Spartans led Madison throughout a tight game and caught a huge break at the end to pocket a thrilling 49-47 victory before a strong crowd at the Franciscan Activity Center.
In the final sequence, Rams’ standout Tyrell Ajian missed a jump shot but teammate Nick Smith rebounded and scored what appeared to be the game-tying basket just before the buzzer.
However, officials incorrectly ruled the shot came after the buzzer. The photo attached to this story, taken from the stands by Madison student John Pavlensky, clearly shows the ball in the air with .2 seconds showing on the clock — meaning the basket should’ve counted and the contest should’ve gone to overtime.
It was a tough finish for a splendid game.
“There was great intensity,” St. Peter’s coach Joe Jakubick said. “Our kids battled all night and we really controlled the game until we made some dumb mistakes at the end.”
Madison opened a 16-10 first-quarter lead, but the Spartans began the second period with a 10-0 run and eventually earned a 27-25 halftime edge.
Both offenses slowed dramatically in the third quarter, and Jakubick’s club grabbed a 37-31 margin heading to the final eight minutes.
“We played extremely hard, but we didn’t play well at times,” Madison coach Tim Mergel said. “As a coach you want to give credit to the other team, but I couldn’t be more proud of how our kids battled back.”
St. Peter’s (9-2) took a 47-40 lead with 1:38 showing on the clock, but a couple of turnovers and a handful of missed free throws opened the door for the Rams.
Madison (6-5) clawed all the way back during a furious rally to pull within 49-47 and grabbed the rebound off a missed free throw with seven seconds left to set up the final frantic moments.
Ajian dribbled to the left wing where his shot was wide of the mark, setting up his teammate.
“They’ve shot the 3-ball well all year, but tonight we wanted to crowd them,” Jakubick said. “We’re progressing as a defensive team.”
St. Peter’s sophomore Mason Campbell led all scorers with 17 points, while guard Tyson Kent added 12, and turned in an outstanding floor game.
Ajian led Madison with 15 points, while Jacob Koehler and Billy Buckley each chipped in 12.
“We attacked them when we wanted, but for whatever reason we settled for a lot of jump shots, and they didn’t go down,” Mergel said.
