Newark boys find a way to win, nip Trotwood Madison at the buzzer
COLUMBUS ― With the clock winding down in a tie game Sunday, Newark senior Drew Oberholtzer had his shot swatted out of bounds by athletic Trotwood Madison.
Steele Meister made sure he had a much easier look for the game winner.
After the Wildcats took a timeout with 4.9 seconds, Meister took the inbounds pass at the top of the key, drove into the paint, spun and dished to Oberholtzer for a wide open layup at the buzzer, giving Newark a pulsating 50-48 win in the Battle In The 614 at Ohio Dominican.
“We wanted to get Steele into space and to get our shooters in the corners,” coach Jeff Quackenbush said. “Steele made a big play, and it’s something Drew will remember forever.”
Obeholtzer also set the screen that started the sequence and opened things up.
“When Drew set the screen at first, I had two guys come out right away and they stayed on me,” Meister said. “He was able to get open for the easy shot.”
“We ran a clear out for Steele and he handled it with his right hand,” Oberholtzer said. “I just went to the opposite (left) side.”
Newark (11-4) won despite an off night from the field, hitting just 19-of-48 for 39 percent and only 5-of-21 on 3s for 23 percent. They were also out-rebounded 28-23 by the Rams, who had 6-foot-8, 270-pound Jamiel Atkins in the middle. And prior to the winning basket, the Wildcats went over six minutes without scoring. But Trotwood (6-7) made only 10-of-19 free throws, and Newark never relinquished the lead after the second quarter.
The Wildcats built a 48-42 edge early in the fourth, as Meister made two foul shots, and Braylon Morris and Ethan Stare got open for layups, the latter on a backdoor pass from Grant Burkholder with 6:37 left. Newark then decided to run some clock. However, they couldn’t convert and the Rams fought back. They hit just 3-of-6 free throws, but Tim Carpenter, a fluid 6-4 guard, notched a game-tying layup with 1:00 to play, setting up the final drama.
“If we have the ball, they can’t score, and we work on it in practice all the time,” Oberholtzer said. “We know we’re going to play in a lot of games like this.”
“We missed some 3-pointers and some layups, but we have to be a lot more physical if we’re going to win games in February,” Quackenbush said. “We have to handle pressure and be stronger with the ball.”
The winners never trailed after Meister cashed in a 3 from the left corner, off an assist by freshman Ty Gilbert, and pulled into a 14-14 tie at the end of the first quarter. Stare took over in the second, continually driving to the basket for eight quick points, but Newark had no answer for Atkins, who powered in all 14 of his points in the first half including 10 in the second quarter. He finished with eight rebounds and three blocked shots.
“The big guy hadn’t been playing much until lately, and he’s only a sophomore,” Quackenbush said. “He’s going to be a good one.”
A 13-4 run in the final 2:48 of the half broke a 22-22 tie and sent Newark out to a 35-28 halftime lead. Meister had seven points in the surge, including a 3-pointer, while Burkholder and Morris also connected from long range. Meister has been battling through a recent slump.
“The coaches keep trusting in me, and I just keep playing,” Meister said. “My teammates still have that confidence in me.”
Newark’s collapsing zone defense helped keep Atkins at bay in the second half, but Carpenter flourished. He struck for nine third-quarter points, six on fast-break layups, and pulled the Rams into a 42-42 tie going to the fourth. He had 11 of his 16 points in the second half for Trotwood, a solid 19-of-39 from the field for 48 percent but 0-of-9 on 3s.
Stare popped in 15 of his 19 points in the first half for the Wildcats, while Meister scored 12 of his 14 as Trotwood picked up its defense in the second half. “They can get up and down, they have some size and they’re physical,” Oberholtzer said. Burkholder was held to eight points, but still was big with five assists and four steals.
“Ethan is getting to the rim a lot more, but I thought his seven rebounds were just as important,” Quackenbush said. “And Steele had 10. There weren’t a lot of easy rebounds against a team like that, especially on the defensive end.”
Quackenbush said his club suffered a bit of a letdown after its impressive 69-40 win at Lancaster.
“There was not as much intensity as we had Friday, and we can’t afford to play like that,” he said. “Our goal is to get back here for the district finals, and we have to have the intensity. But they were able to find a way to win.”
“It gets harder and harder to win this time of year,” Oberholtzer said. “We didn’t play our best, but were still able to get one.”
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