MIDDLETOWN — Up against what coach Mike Mullin described as “one of the top four teams in the state,” and up against the wall, literally and figuratively, Middletown”s Mustangs were summarily ousted from the North Coast Section Division IV playoffs Wednesday night, 58-29.
But Mullin was undaunted after his final game at the Mustang helm.
“Our guys worked hard all year and they”re still (North Central League I North) champs,” Mullin said. “You can”t take that away from them.”
That”s about all the pesky St. Mary”s Panthers didn”t take. Somebody should have checked the parking lot. The Panthers definitely know how to steal. Middletown had 24 turnovers in three quarters.
In all, St. Mary”s scored 18 points off 13 forced takeaways. The turnovers came in bunches. Five straight times tthe Mustangs put the ball in play in the final minutes of the first quarter and five of six in the final minutes of the second quarter ? and they lost it.
The first clue that it was going to be a l-o-n-g night for the Mustangs in their first home playoff game since 1994 was their point total at the end of the opening quarter. The two they got when Bo Sheffer scored the game”s first basket to give Middletown the only lead it would hold in the game”s entirety.
Sheffer”s field goal would be followed by an 18-0 run by the third-seeded Panthers (20-9). By the half, it was 30-12. Another run of 19-1 in the third quarter turned the lights out for good for Middletown, which one would think would be satisfactory to St. Mary”s coach Manny Nodar. But it wasn”t. At times Nodar”s loud scoldings of his team during a timeout could be heard above all else.
“We didn”t play well in the first half,” he said in all seriousness.
Nodar said that he was working on the Panthers” half-court game against the Mustangs for the next round of the playoffs on Saturday.
“Our game is transition, but what teams will do to us is that they”ll get back (on defense), so tonight was a good opportunity for us to work on that,” Nodar said.
“Of the takeaways,” he said, “that”s our game — full-court press and intensity on offense. When we”re on both we”re tough to beat.”
Mercifully, Nodar played his shock troops for much of the second half, including the entire fourth quarter, which had the result of 1) Middletown actually outscoring St. Mary”s in the final period and 2) no St. Mary”s played standing out scoring-wise. Jay Pollard”s 13 were high for the game. Athletic Dominique Lee and perimeter shooter Mike Stewart each had 12.
John-Wesley Davis” six points led Middletown.
The Mustangs finish the season at 13-15.
