Matt Wilson hit five three-pointers, including an ice-cold triple with 1.2 seconds left to lift the Olentangy Liberty boys basketball team to a thrilling 42-39 non-league win over visiting Newark Wednesday night in Powell.
The Patriots, thanks in large part to their defense, led 14-8 after a quarter, 20-14 at the break and 29-24 heading into the fourth. They didn’t allow a point until midway through the opening quarter and led 12-4 after Wilson cashed in on back-to-back three-pointers.
Newark’s Grant Burkholder beat the first-quarter buzzer to make it a 14-8 game, but Liberty, thanks to buckets for Nick Metzger and Alex Okuley, jumped out to an 18-8 edge early in the second. Again, the Wildcats didn’t score until Newark’s Steele Meister converted a three-point play with 4:22 left in the half, and they trailed 22-14 before Burkholder sank a floater at the 4:03 mark of the third.
The Wildcats managed to claw all the way back in the fourth. Ethan Stare opened the quarter with a three to cut the deficit to two and, after Wilson hit a three and James Hummell cashed in on a couple free throws, Newark used an 8-0 run to storm in front.
The Wildcats still led, 37-34, with 2:41 left, but a Hummell layin cut it to one before a Jackson Mikola block and pin-point outlet pass turned into a three-point play the hard way from Hummell.
Newark’s Austin Rose tied it at 39 with 1:47 left, setting up the final sequence. After dribbling out most of the clock, Wilson drilled the game-winner from the wing in the final seconds. Okuley then stole the ensuing in-bound pass to put the finishing touches on the win.
Wilson finished with a game-high 17 points while Hummell added 11 and Okuley finished with eight.
Burkholder (13 points), Meister (12 points) and Stare (nine points) shouldered most of the scoring load for the Wildcats.
Olentangy Berlin 69, New Albany 53
The Bears used a dominant second quarter to pull away and a were solid down the stretch, outscoring the visiting Eagles 19-13 in the fourth quarter to notch a non-league win Wednesday night in Delaware.
Berlin, which trailed by a point after a competitive opening quarter, outscored New Albany 18-7 in the second to take control.
Mathios Abenet led the Bears with 25 points while Sam Dunn had 25 of his own to pace the Eagles.
Defiance 49, Olentangy 44
Harrison Ronnebaum had a huge sequence late, coming up with a steal before driving the length of the floor and converting a three-point play to pull the Braves within three with 2:20 left, but the host Bulldogs slammed the door from there to collect a win in the semifinals of the inaugural Grube Family Holiday Classic Wednesday at Defiance.
Defiance sealed the deal at the free-throw line as Bradyn Shaw went 8-f0r-10 in the final 1:37.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Ella Hazelrigg calmly connected on a pair of clutch free throws with 14 seconds left to lift visiting Buckeye Valley to a 32-31 non-league win over Graham Wednesday in St. Paris.
Hazelrigg led the Barons with 12 points while Emily Huston and Molly Meier chipped in 10 and nine, respectively.
BV, which improved to 7-2, outscored Graham in each of the first three quarters before holding on late.
