The Daily Standard
Story Archive
Parkway's Wyatt Carptenter (14) runs the fast break as Minster's Cole Albers (42) and Brogan Stephey (12) move upcourt during Friday's MAC game in Rockford. The Panthers held on to beat the Wildcats 48-45 for their fifth straight victory.
ROCKFORD - Just when it looked like Minster had the answer, Parkway changed the question.
Parkway regained the lead in the third quarter and held off Minster the rest of the game to stay unbeaten in Midwest Athletic Conference boys basketball action with a 48-45 victory on Friday night at Panther Gymnasium.
The win is the fifth straight for the Panthers as they move to 8-3 and 2-0 in conference play. The Wildcats drop to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in the MAC.
"I thought it was a well-played game," said Parkway coach Doug Hughes. "They are a very difficult matchup, a lot of scorers and got size. … I was really proud how our kids stepped up and made plays down the stretch when they had to."
The Panthers used solid defense to stymie the Wildcats early on. The zone kept Minster's 6-8 post player Cole Albers from getting any significant touches while the Wildcats' outside game struggled, shooting just 1-of-11 from the 3-point line in the first half. Overall, Minster made just five shots on 23 tries in the first half as Parkway led 21-14 at the break.
"Their zone had us for awhile, which surprises me with all the shooters we have," said Minster coach Mike McClurg. "I thought we were hesitant. The zone slowed us up a bit (and) kept us guessing."
"I thought our second group when they subbed (Parkway substituted five at a time) did a good job getting into the defense and being very vocal," said Hughes.
Parkway only lost the lead three times on the night, on two ties and a lead change with 5:45 to go in the third quarter when Kole Richard knocked down a 3-pointer to put Minster in front 23-22. Trevor Stearns quickly gave the Panthers the lead back 15 seconds later with a trey of his own to make it 25-23.
Minster's Cole Albers puts up a shot as Parkway's Douglas Hughes (44) defends.
Albers, held scoreless in the first half, got his first bucket of the night with 5:21 to go in the third to tie the game, but Caiden Berry scored to put Parkway in front 27-25, followed by Devon Crouch nailing a trey to push it to 30-25. Ethan Pond beat the buzzer with a trey to give Parkway a 34-26 lead heading to the fourth.
Minster looked to its sharpshooters to kick-start it in the final eight minutes. Richard and Cole McClurg knocked down early treys, but Parkway had a counter-punch with buckets from Crouch and Stearns.
Berry hit a 3-pointer with 4:52 remaining in regulation to put Parkway up 41-34, but Minster kept charging back. Richard knocked down another trey with 4:42 to play, then after Parkway tried to shed some clock, Brogan Stephey hit two free throws with 2:50 to play to get Minster within two at 41-39. Stearns countered with a bucket to get the margin back to four, only to have Richard come back with a score of his own with 92 seconds to play.
Parkway reached the bonus with 1:09 to play as Trent Rollins knocked down two free throws to push the lead to four, but Stephey quickly countered with a bucket. Minster got a steal, but could not convert a layup. Xavier Samples hit one of two to make it a three-point game at 46-43.
Albers got a stickback to cut it back to a one-point game as the Wildcats had to foul out of the timeout with 9.8 seconds to go. Bruns was fouled and sank both free throws with 8.6 seconds to play to get the margin back to three. With two fouls to spare, Parkway stopped Minster's momentum twice as a long-range three at the buzzer fell short to give the Panthers the win.
"We got up one, and then, bang, a couple threes on their end, a couple tough ones if I remember, and we lost a couple guys (due to fouls)," said coach McClurg. "We knew they had guys who could shoot it."
Parkway's Trevor Stearns goes up for a basket during Friday's game with Minster at Panther Gymnasium.
Stearns was the only double-digit scorer for Parkway with 18 points, but seven others scored at least two points.
"They do a great job, every day since day one," said Hughes. "We talk about "Are you able to accept what your role is?' That's really important with this group. We're playing 10 guys because we have confidence in that bench. We believe that will be what helps us win games down the road."
Richard led Minster with 20 points. Stephey added 12 points.
"I think, honestly, we didn't show up ready to go in the right way," said coach McClurg. "(Parkway) got out to an early lead and we're mentally not tough enough yet to recover from that."
While Parkway has a week off before traveling to Versailles next Friday for MAC play, Minster will look to bounce back tonight with Ottoville coming to Wildcat Gymnasium.
