MANSFIELD — Clear Fork coach Steve Bechtel said his Colts had Mansfield Senior right where they wanted them, down by just five points midway through the third quarter.
Then the pressing and speedy Tygers shifted into an even higher gear.
The result was a 20-8 spurt the remainder of the period as Mansfield Senior hit nine of its last 11 shots in the third en route to a 64-40 Ohio Cardinal Conference victory.
The win keeps Mansfield Senior alone atop the league standings, now 9-1 overall and 7-1 in the OCC. Clear Fork slipped to 3-7 overall and 1-5 in the league. West Holmes (9-4, 5-2) dropped its second OCC game of the year on Friday night, falling to Wooster.
Bechtel smiled afterward when asked what happened after his Colts had battled back from double-digit deficits in the first and second quarters to trail 32-27 with 5:21 left in the third quarter.
“That’s exactly what I asked our kids after the game,” Bechtel said. “(Mansfield Senior) changed the tempo. We missed some (easy shots) and free throws and they just took off. We wanted to prevent their big run, but they got it.”
Mansfield Senior played again without senior center Robert Jones (illness) and also missed senior guard Chek Washington (college visit). Still, all 10 Tygers scored, led by 17 points from junior Naradain James.
“Our strength is our depth,” Mansfield Senior coach J.T. Reese said. “We have not had a full roster at a single game this season. Someone has always been missing.”
After shooting 47 percent in the first half, Mansfield Senior nailed 65 percent (13 of 20) of its shots in the final 16 minutes, scoring 14 points in the game off turnovers, compared to just three for the Colts.
“This is a game of spurts. We kind of figured out they were running a match-up zone and set some screens. On defense, we turned it up, got some steals and made some easy baskets,” Reese said. “It’s a lot easier to make shots when you’re closer to the basket.”
While Senior was achieving good balance on offense, the Colts struggled to handle the Tygers’ pressure – both full-court and half-court. Clear Fork shot just 36 percent from the field (13 of 36), including five of 18 in the second half. Only four Colts scored in the game.
Senior guard Ridge Winand, who scored his 1,000th career point in Clear Fork’s last game, was limited to just 13 points on 4-of-13 shooting, about 10 points below his seasonal average. Senior forward Brandon Leurs also had 13 points.
“They were able to throw multiple guys at Ridge,” Bechtel said. “Some taller, some quicker. They made it rough on him.”
Reese said that was the Tygers’ plan.
“No doubt. Ridge Winand gets a lot of shots, but we wanted to make all of his shots tough ones. I bet if you ask him right now, he will tell you he is tired.”
Mansfield Senior connected of 26 of 47 shots in the game (55 percent) and added seven of 12 at the line. James was the only Tyger in double figures, but senior center Donovyn added nine and senior wing Jalen Roose added eight. The Tygers had 31 rebounds, including 12 offensive. Senior win Marquez led Mansfield with seven rebounds while James collected six. Mansfield had just seven turnovers.
Clear Fork was 11 of 16 at the foul line. In addition to Winand and Leurs, junior Kadin Chrastina added eight and junior Griffin Robinette added six. Clear Fork had 21 rebounds, led by six from Leurs and five each from Winand and Robinette. The Colts had 12 turnovers.
Mansfield Senior also won the JV game, 55-35. Sophomore Raheem Clark led the young Tygers with 14 points. Sophomore Clay Leedy led the Colts with 11 points while Luke Stevens added nine.
Mansfield Senior travels to Madison tonight for another OCC game. The Tygers hammered the Rams, 86-45, in their season opener. Clear Fork hosts Ashland tonight in a league game.
