02-10-09
BY JACK BULLOCK
MOUNDS - The Benton Rangers did nearly everything right on Tuesday night in their road contest against Meridian.

They shot the ball well (18-of-35 from the floor), took care of the ball (eight turnovers) and hit 16-of-21 from the foul line.

They controlled the tempo of the contest and they led or were tied for nearly the entire second half.

But Meridian led at the most important time of the game.

The end.

Meridian’s Randle Hite – who led all scorers with 19-points – took a pass in the left corner and drove the baseline for a lay in score with :01.9 of play to give the ‘Cats the victory, 57-56.

Meridian’s Hite, Isiah Jones and Greg Nesby led a fourth quarter rally to thwart the Benton upset bid as the top-ranked Class 1A team in the latest ABV rankings survived.

“It came down to the wire and we just found the open man and he (Hyte) is good on the baseline,” said Meridian head coach Jeff Mandrell who saw his club improve to 20-3 on the season. “We were lucky to win this game. Maybe this is a game that was meant to be and maybe we will get some of those breaks now.”

The Rangers had three players in double-figures in scoring with 18-points coming from Tim Corn – who was in foul trouble for most of the second half.

Zach LaBuwi and Trevor Myers added 16 and 13 respectively.

“We played a great game tonight and our kids laid it on the line. We just didn’t have enough to get it done,” said Benton head coach Matt Wynn – whose club stands at 8-17 on the season. “Give Meridian credit. They were behind most of the game but they battled and made some plays down the stretch.”

Meridian allowed the Rangers to get a lead in the early going as the Bobcats came out of the lockerroom cold with an opening quarter, 4-of-13 shooting period.

Benton led 5-0 early and then broke a 5-all tie with an 8-2 run.

Corn scored all eight of the points on a drive to the basket and pair of 3-pointers.

The second trey found the bottom of the net with 2:29 to go to make it 13-7.

Hite scored five points in the first quarter for Meridian and his 3-pointer from the left wing made it 15-13 with just over one minute left.

But an omen of things to come happened to close the first quarter.

The Rangers ran the clock down and Corn got loose on the right baseline for a drive to the basket for a shot off the glass to close the frame at 17-13.

“I thought Benton played well and I had seen them before. They played better tonight than what I had seen them but they played very well tonight,” added Mandrell.

Benton controlled the tempo for the entire game and kept the Bobcats from making the contest a track meet.

Hite started the second quarter with a basket and later two free throws to even the game at 17.

Meridian scored a pair of baskets late in the half with reserve Brent Kennedy scoring on a drive to the basket and then Jerry Johnson hit a one-handed shot in the lane that bounced in for a 21-20 Bobcat lead with :36 left.

As it turned out that would be the last time that Meridian had a lead until the final buzzer.

LaBuwi took an assist from reserve guard Trey Garrett and scored in the lane while being fouled by Kennedy.

His made free throw with :13.2 left sent the teams to the break at 23-21 Rangers.

Garrett scored six points off the bench for Benton in the third quarter to help keep his team in the lead.

He helped pick up the scoring slack left by Corn picking up his fourth foul with 4:15 remaining relegating him to the bench for the rest of the quarter.

Meridian tied the game with a 3-pointer from the right corner by Devante McClung at the 2:38 mark.

But Garrett closed the quarter with two drives to the basket from the Benton spread offense for a 40-37 advantage. His second one found the mark with :02 left.

The Rangers appeared to have found the formula for victory on this night and moved in for the kill to open the fourth quarter.

A 6-2 run with points from Myers, LaBuwi and Corn pushed Benton to a 46-39 lead.

LaBuwi scored on a lob pass from Ryan Stevens and Corn followed that up with a score on a post-up move from the right side.

Despite all of the Benton success – Meridian stayed within striking distance.

“Tonight we stayed with it and made some key shots,” Coach Mandrell said. “I looked up a few times and thought we were totally out of it but then I realized that we were only a possession away and I knew that if we could just get a steal or a stop we would be right there.”

Jones hit an important 3-pointer to even the score at 51-apiece with 2:26 left.

Nesby stepped up for three important offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter – all three ended up with points for Meridian.

In fact he cleaned up two missed shots by Jones.

His first one tied the game at 53-all and his second one – with :43 remaining - evened the score again at 55.

”It wasn’t just the last play. It was the last three or four possessions that if we get a stop or one defensive rebound we win the game,” added Coach Wynn.

Benton held the ball looking for a final opportunity.

LaBuwi was fouled in the lane by Nesby with :11.9 left.

LaBuwi missed the first shot attempt. Following a Meridian time out LaBuwi sank the second shot for a 56-55 lead setting up Hite’s heroics.

After using a foul - which they had to give – Benton and Meridian exchanged timeouts before the Bobcats got the ball inbounds to Jones – who found Hite on a pass in the left corner.

His subsequent drive to the basket made a winner out of the ‘Cats.

“We didn’t cut the baseline off on that play and then we probably should have fouled him before he got off a shot,” added Coach Wynn. “When we saw that he was going to make the shot we should have sent him to the line. “Our kids did a good job tonight. The tempo was perfect for us. That’s what we wanted – a game in the 50’s – and we felt like we could win if we kept the score down but we just didn’t get it done.”

Meridian was 23-of-55 from the floor on the night and were just 5-of-17 from behind the 3-point line.

But the key stat of the contest was rebounding.

The Bobcats controlled the boards 32-17 and the Rangers had just one offensive rebound in the entire game.

“This group keeps their head about them and they know that it is different than last year. We don’t have much size and they know that they have to come ready to play every night,” Coach Mandrell explained. “We’re talented – but we have to come to play.”

Benton heads back into River-to-River action this weekend with tough road games at Harrisburg and Herrin on Friday and Saturday night.

Meridian plays Shawnee at home on Friday night and then will travel to play in the opening game the Waltonville Shootout on Saturday against Louisville North Clay.

“We did some good things but I didn’t think we played a good game but we got a win against a good program (Benton) and a well coached team tonight,” Coach Mandrell finalized. “They are tough to play against and we are glad to get the win.”

Benton (56) – Myers 2 1 6-8 13, Corn 3 3 3-4 18, Stevens 0 0 2-2 2, LaBuwi 6 0 4-5 16, Garrett 3 0 0-0 6, Smith 0 0 1-2 1.
2FG-12, 3FG-45, FT-17-22, PF-18.
Meridian (57) – Hill 1 0 1-2 3, Hite 5 2 3-6 19, Kennedy 1 0 0-0 2, McClung 1 1 0-0 5, Johnson 3 0 0-0 6, Jones 3 2 2-2 14, Amos 1 0 0-0 2, Nesby 3 0 0-0 6. 2FG-15, 3FG-8, FT-13-16, PF-20.
Fouled Out – None.
Technical Fouls – None.