MANDARIN- Mandarin (15-11) succumbed to Oviedo (22-7) 77-70 in the Class 9A Regional Quarterfinals on Thursday evening.
The season caps a year which saw the Mustangs capture their first district title since 2007, defining the 2018-2019 season as a momentous one.
Fourth year Mandarin head coach Coach George McCleod exclaimed , “We are not known as a basketball school so many did not expect us to accomplish what we have. There is no hurt, only happiness and we are proud. The loss was to a phenomenal team”.
The Mustangs record season would be brought to an unexpected halt when they would face a solid Oviedo team.
Oviedo head coach Jason Vallery would say, “Mandarin fans packed the stands! Great Atmosphere!”.
Alexander Schwenke would lead Mandarin with 24 points, William Spriggs chipped in with 15 points, Quajon Young contributed 8 and Demario Douglas would add 7 points.
Aidan Knight would lead Oviedo with 24 points, while Morgan Mitchell added 16 points, James Groetsch chipped in with 11 points and Mamush Galloway would contribute 10 points.
A full house is what Mandarin would have on Thursday night as numerous fans and the Mandarin football team decorated with their state championship medals filled the stands cheering on their fellow classmates.
The Mustangs enticed the Lions early on with an uphill battle as a 6 man offensive play allowed Mandarin to lead the entire first quarter with a 17-12 lead over Oviedo.
Spriggs and Schwenke mastered three pointers on a familiar turf while Oviedo struggled with the Mustangs tenacity on defense and offense.
Closing in on the second quarter, Oviedo began to catch the rhythm of the Mustangs offense. The Lions would use a man defense to stagger the Mustangs scoring chances.
While applying pressure to their offense, Oviedo would find holes in their defense allowing Groetsch and Kayamo Galloway to ante up the score to outscore Mandarin 30-20 for a 42-37 slim first half lead.
Mandarin would begin the third quarter dueling against Oviedo with back-to-back shots. Missed shots stumbled the Mustang offense while a weakened defense would allow Oviedo to score at will as the Lions outscore the Mustangs 21-9 during the third quarter to give Oviedo a 63-46 at the end of the third quarter.
Heading into the fourth quarter with a 17 point deficit, coach McCleod could be heard on the sideline speaking strongly, “Schwenke, take short shots”.
Mandarin would set up a man defense blocking the powerful Oviedo offense. Unfortunately, the aggressive yet effective plays would send Oviedo to the free throw line on numerous occasions allowing Oviedo to score 10 of their 14 points from the free throw line in the fourth quarter.
Schwenke and Spriggs led the team with a master plan to take the short shots as often as possible while doubling down on Oviedo’s offense.
Mandarin would come back from a 17 point deficit to outscore Oviedo 24-14.
However, the fourth quarter rally would come up short as the Lions would take home the 77-70 win.
