 03/04/2024
BY DAN L. CHAMNESS
CHARLESTON - It took some time for the Mounds Meridian Bobcats
to warm up, but once they did, nothing could stop them.
But,
beating a team that hit 62.5 percent of their buckets in the
second half would be a tall order for most teams.
The
Bobcats topped the Christ Our Rock Lutheran Silver Stallions
60-53 at the Eastern Illinois University Class 1A Super-Sectional
on Monday night.
With
the win it guaranteed themselves an Illinois High School Association
Class 1A trophy to be awarded this weekend.
With
the win, the Bobcats will advance to State Farm Arena at the
University of Illinois with a 28-8 mark.
At
halftime, the Bobcats held a slim 21-18 lead.
They
would get a pair of buckets, one from freshman Antonio Flenoid,
Jr. and one from senior Will Thurston.
After
Christ Our Rock Lutheran hit a regulation bucket, Thurston promptly
responded with the first of two three-pointers he would hit
in the third quarter.
He
would strike from the left wing at the 6:36 mark.
The
6-foot-2 senior would hit again, this time in the final minute
of the quarter.
Meridian's
Javionne Ranson would be using his speed to get to the basket
as he scored twice within 40 seconds, hitting a layup at 2:48.
But,
the Silver Stallions were not going quietly into that good night.
When
Jayden Bazile nailed a regulation bucket inside two minutes,
he pulled the Silver Stallions within one point, 34-33.
They
would only get one other bucket in the final two minutes of
the third quarter as Landon Isaiah scored the lone bucket.
The
Bobcats would close out the third quarter earning seven points
in the final 90 seconds.
Flenoid
hit a regulation bucket at 1:26, Thurston drained a trey inside
the minute mark, while Ranson hit a pair of charity tosses with
only 3.2 seconds to play.
Ranson
hit an old-fashioned three-pointer with 6:30 to play as the
Bobcats began to flirt with earning a double-digit lead.
A
little over one minute later, at the 5:13 mark to be exact,
the Bobcats would have a double-digit lead, 48-38, when Thurston
bucketed a pair of free throws.
The
double-digit lead did not last, but from that point, the Bobcats
made sure it would be at least two trips down the floor for
the Stallions to catch them.
They
could not get any closer than seven points on four different
occasions.
Meridian
would lead by as many as 11 in the final two minutes when Shamar
Easley scored his only bucket of the game with 1:35 to play.
Meridian,
who scored only six points in the first quarter, led at every
other break.
They
were able to convert CORL turnovers into 18 points, compared
to 11 points on their turnovers.
"We
could not let Christ Our Rock set the tone," said David
Davis, Meridian's head coach. "We want to have fun in Champaign.
We also want to show we can play with anyone, give our best
effort, and bring back a state title."
Meridian
will face Hope Academy at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday in the first
semifinal of Class 1A.
Hope
Academy is coached by former Chicago Farragut star Ronnie Fields.
If
Meridian wins, they will play for the state title on Saturday
morning at 11 a.m.
A
loss would send them to the third place game with either Aurora
Christian or Winchester Coop. That game would start at 6:30
p.m. on Friday. |
