Above) Ada's Zack Zimmerman and Temple Christian's Derek Shultz score in the final seconds.
By Cort Reynolds
ADA – Temple Christian junior ace Derek Shultz swished a 29-footer at the final buzzer to lift the Pioneers to a stunning 51-49 win at Ada in the regular season finale for the Ada High School boys basketball team, February 15.
The Bulldogs had taken a 49-48 lead with just seven seconds remaining. Junior Zack Zimmerman swished a clutch lane pull-up shot to give Ada a short-lived edge.
LTC wisely did not take a timeout and got the ball to Shultz, who sped upcourt before he came to a jump stop and launched a high-arching triple. The horn sounded with the ball in the air, and it tickled the twine with no time left.
The Bulldogs finished the regular season 14-8 with the difficult defeat.
Temple Christian improved to an identical 14-8 after the thrilling win.
“It is not the way we wanted to go into the tournament,” said somber Ada head coach Chris Sautter. “My biggest concern is Slade (Gossman). He worked so hard to rehab and get to this point at the end of the season.”
Hustling junior post Gossman re-injured his surgically-repaired knee and missed most of the last three quarters. The extent of the injury was unknown.
Zimmerman hit a layup to open the scoring, but TC answered with a 7-0 run. Sophomore Carson Conley ended the spurt with two foul shots. A baseline drive by Shultz was answered by a Gossman layup.
Conley buried a trey from the top of the key, but Temple spurted ahead 17-5. Shultz banked in an acrobatic, hanging drive. Four Ada foul shots and a spinning layup by Conley cut the deficit to 21-14 after the first period.
Pioneer Alex Patrick sank his second triple from the right corner to open the second stanza. Conley grabbed a defensive rebound and rambled coast to coast for a layup. Kayleb Hickman splashed a right corner triple 6:11 before intermission to cut the deficit to five.
Shultz bounced in a lane runner, followed by a Conley layup. Shultz canned a short bank shot, yet Kolton Dysert answered with two free throws. Hickman drained a right wing trifecta, but Quincy Seddelmeyer sank an 11-footer to give the Pioneers a 31-26 advantage at halftime.
Ada junior Gavin Oldfield made two driving shots to open the second half. Zimmerman nailed a lane turnaround shot, and Dysert canned an uncontested driving layup to cap an 8-0 flurry to start the third period.
Hickman drilled a left corner trey to make it 37-33 at the 5:27 mark. Pioneer post Isaiah Kiser sank two inside baskets to keep the visitors close.
A 15-foot pull-up by Shultz cut the Ada lead to 38-37. His driving floater tied it 39-39. His follow layin gave TC a 41-39 edge with 1:44 left in the third.
Ada sophomore T.J. Griffith scored a layup off a pick and roll pass from Hickman to knot it up again 19 seconds later.
Zimmerman then gave Ada a 43-41 lead heading to the fourth period by hitting two charity stripers with 1.5 ticks left. The Bulldogs outscored Temple 17-10 in the third quarter.
Layups by Oldfield and Griffith to start the final stanza gave Ada its biggest lead at 47-41 with 6:22 remaining. Menke nailed a left corner trey, then stole the ball and sailed in for a layup to cut the margin to 47-46 with 5:41 left.
Menke then blew past the defense for a layup to complete his personal 7-0 run to put TC back on top 48-47 with 2:41 left.
Temple ran off over a minute of clock but took two ill-advised shots that they missed. Zimmerman then hit what looked like the potential game-winner on the lane pull-up with seven seconds to go.
But Shultz hurried up the floor, weaving from the left side to the right, and swished the long three at the final horn to win it.
Hickman scored 12 points and Zimmerman tallied 11 to pace the balanced Bulldogs. Conley was the third Bulldog in double figures with 10 points.
Shultz canned a game-high 22 points on efficient 10-14 shooting. Malachi Menke netted a dozen points, and Isaiah Kiser added 10 markers.
Ada canned 13 two-point field goals, and the Bulldogs drilled four triples. Ada converted 11 of 18 free throw attempts (61 percent).
TC connected on 18 two-pointers and sank four trifectas. The Pioneers sank three of six foul shots (50 percent).
Ada finished the home portion of their schedule 4-6 with the loss. It was the final home game for Bulldog seniors Levi Green, Ethan Lawrence and Brody Erickson.
Ada rallied from a 16-point deficit to win an exciting JV game in overtime, 48-42. Blake Zoladz buried a triple from the top of the key with seconds left in regulation to tie it 42-all. Lucas Henson then splashed a right corner trey to break the tie in OT.
The Bulldog reserves finished 17-5 with the comeback victory. Zoladz led Ada with 13 points, and Andrew Allen netted 11.
Ada visits top seed Lima Central Catholic (14-7, 5-2 NWC) in the Div. VI sectionals Friday, February 21. The Thunderbirds lost 92-75 to Lima Senior Saturday night.
“LCC is athletic and will pressure us,” said Sautter. “We have four days to prepare for them.”
Ada 49 (14-8)
Oldfield 3 0-1 6, Dysert 1 2-2 4, Zimmerman 3 5-6 11, Green 0 0-0 0, Conley 4 1-2 10, Hickman 3 3-5 12, Gossman 1 0-0 2, Griffith 2 0-0 4.
Totals: 13-4/11-18/49. 3-pointers: Hickman 3, Conley 1.
LTC 51 (14-8)
Menke 4 0-0 9, Patrick 2 0-0 6, Shultz 10 1-2 22, Seddelmeyer 2 0-2 4, Kiser 4 2-2 10.
Totals: 18-4/3-6/51. 3-pointers: Patrick 2, Shultz 1, Menke 1.
|
ADA LTC |
1 14 21 |
2 12 10 |
3 17 10 |
4 6 10 |
FINAL 49 51 |
JV: Ada 48, TC 42 OT.
