The Thomas Jefferson Cavaliers eked out a 50-48 win over their city, conference and district rival McAuley Catholic on Wednesday night in the Mercy/Warrior Classic.
Neither team led by more than five points (McAuley Catholic 26-21 late in the first half and Thomas Jefferson 50-45 late in regulation) and the lead exchanged hands many times until early in the fourth when the Cavaliers took a 39-38 lead after consecutive baskets from seniors Jay Ball and Tyler Brouhard.
McAuley Catholic knocked the lead down to 46-45 within the final minute, but the Warriors had three turnovers, including two in the final 10 seconds, and Brouhard and Ball hit four straight free throws to extend the lead to five.
Michael Parrigon’s 3-point shot at the buzzer closed out the scoring.
“McAuley in the McAuley tournament on their court, we knew they were going to come out fired up and ready to go,” Thomas Jefferson coach Chris Myers said. “I thought our kids did a really nice job down the stretch of executing those last 2 ½ minutes of the game and getting it done. I felt like our defensive energy the last two minutes of the game was fantastic and our offensive execution matched it. That’s what you want in a tight game down the stretch, that defensive intensity with the offensive execution to get it done.”
“Again, we’re right there, but we just had a four-minute stretch in that one that cost us,” McAuley Catholic coach Tony Witt said. “In the second quarter, we had three bad possessions to end the half. With a five-point lead, you have all the momentum sucked out of you going into the locker room. Then again, in the second half, we find ourselves in a situation where we’re leading, and we do the same exact thing again. That’s not what good teams do, and essentially puts tally marks in the loss column for you. That bug bit us again tonight.”
Brouhard led all scorers with 24 points and two of his highlights Wednesday were buzzer-beating 3-point shots in the first and second quarters. He scored 17 points in the first half.
Ball finished with 18 points, 14 of which he produced in the second half as the Cavaliers found ways to enter the ball to Ball in the midst of a Warrior defense surrounding him.
Kip Atteberry tallied six points, highlighted by an old-fashioned three-point play that put Thomas Jefferson ahead 42-38 with 4:54 remaining in regulation.
Kohl Thurman rounded out the Cavaliers’ scoring with a basket in the first quarter.
Thomas Jefferson improved to 14-4 overall and the Cavaliers play their in-town and conference rival College Heights (16-4) at 7 p.m. on Friday night at the College Heights Athletic Complex with the winner earning a spot in the Mercy/Warrior Classic title game on Saturday.
Also of note, Coach Myers reached a milestone by recording his 200th coaching victory.
The trio of Rocco Bazzano-Joseph, Noah Black, and Bradley Wagner each produced 12 points for the Warriors and Parrigon and Jack Jones combined for the other 12 points with Parrigon at seven and Jones at five.
McAuley Catholic dropped to 6-15 overall and nine of the Warriors’ 15 losses have come by a combined total of 29 points.
“I’m proud of our kids’ defensive effort all night,” Witt said. “It was an outstanding defensive effort. I mean, really for us, a four-minute stretch offensively is the difference for us in the game. I’m sure as a spectator it was a fun game to watch, but ultimately it stings for us at the end of this one.”
The Warriors play at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday in the consolation game.
Meanwhile, Thomas Jefferson and McAuley Catholic are certain to play each other soon … and possibly another time down the road this season in district competition.
“It was a great high school basketball game between two in-town rivals,” Myers said. “Obviously happy to be on the right side of this one. We’re going to end up playing them here again next week, so we know they’ll be ready for us.
“We’re in two or three of the same tournaments. Of course, we get them in conference play and then we’re in districts together. It’s starting to look more like we’re going to have a chance to matchup in districts. We might play them four times on four separate courts.”
“Could be a situation where we play each other on four different floors this year,” Witt said. “We’ll try and learn from this one and get better for the next one.”
The first two meetings this season ended in Thomas Jefferson’s favor.
East Newton girls 54, McAuley Catholic 23
Class 1 McAuley Catholic took a second tough loss in as many nights on their home court in their home tournament with a 31-point defeat against Class 3 East Newton on Wednesday.
The Warriors played the Patriots tough in the first quarter, trailing only 8-7 entering the second, but East Newton produced advantages of 17-4 in the second, 18-9 in the third, and 11-3 in the fourth.
Kloee Williamson led McAuley Catholic with 12 points, Lily Black and Vanessa Diaz each scored four, Kendall Ramsey added two, and Avery Gardner scored one point.
Brooklyn Blanchard scored a game-high 16 points to lead East Newton, while Josie Guinn added 12, Shaw Coburn 11, Cameran Clement eight, and Kadie Sesay seven points.
McAuley Catholic dropped to 7-14 overall and the Warriors play for seventh place on Friday.
Mercy/Warrior Classic
Wednesday’s scores
East Newton girls 54, McAuley Catholic 23
Lamar girls 50, Aurora 48
Greenwood boys 77, Sarcoxie 63
Thomas Jefferson boys 50, McAuley Catholic 48
