SCOTTSVILLE – With 2.7 seconds left in overtime and Allen County-Scottsville and Greenwood tied at 71-all, Patriot sophomore Mason Shirley knew that he “ had to get into the middle of the court and shoot it straight to give it a chance.”
Shirley did just that, and his last-second shot from half court banked in to lift the Patriots to an exhilarating 74-71 victory and send Patriot Gym into a state of pandemonium on Thursday night.
It was the perfect finishing touch for a spectacular performance. Shirley finished the game with 27 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, and ACS head coach Brad Bonds says that Shirley’s stellar play is no surprise.
“Mason has been really big for us all year long,” Bonds said. “He’s come a long way. He’s learned how to become a scoring point guard. Was he capable of doing it? Absolutely. I’m very proud of him.”
In the first half Shirley had just five points, and the Patriots trailed the Gators 37-29 at the intermission.
“In that first half, I really struggled,” Shirley said. “I had my worst half of the season so far, but I knew that my teammates were picking me up. I knew that if I came out and trusted my teammates we would be good to go.”
Owen Stamper added 13 points for ACS while Brett Rippy tallied 12. Jax Cooper was just one free throw and one rebound shy of a double-double, scoring nine points and grabbing nine boards.
Greenwood (0-2) was led in the loss by Noah Stansbury and Jack Roberts with 17 and 18 points, respectively. The Gators will look to pick up their first win of the season on Saturday afternoon against Clinton County in the Spartan Shootout at South Warren.
Allen County-Scottsville (3-0) quickly erased its halftime deficit as a three-point play by Rippy gave the Patriots a 44-41 advantage with three minutes left in the third quarter, and ACS outscored Greenwood 22-9 overall in the frame to own a 51-46 lead going into the fourth.
“I thought we came out in the third quarter and executed our offense a little bit better,” Bonds said. “With what (Greenwood) was doing defensively we just had to get the kids to understand what they were doing out on the floor. We hit those spots, we got some open baskets, and I thought the energy level started turning up on the defensive side of the ball. They just made plays, and that is what this team is very capable of doing.”
But Greenwood was not going down without a fight.
Trailing 57-51 early in the fourth quarter, Greenwood went on a 9-0 run to pull back in front—Noah Stansbury’s 3-pointer from the right wing giving the Gators a 60-57 lead with four minutes left in regulation. The Gators went up 63-59 with 3:24 left on a three-point play by Parker Williams, but ACS continued to scrap and fight.
The two teams traded baskets before Shirley made two free throws with 18 seconds left to tie the game at 66-all. Greenwood had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation, but Jax Cooper blocked Jack Roberts’ shot from the right elbow at the horn.
In overtime Shirley continued to be clutch as he drove into the lane and banked in a fading jumper from the left block to give ACS a 70-68 advantage with 1:20 showing on the clock. Stansbury answered with a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left to put Greenwood up by one, but Shirley once again answered the bell by netting a free throw to tie the game with 18 seconds left.
Greenwood once again put the ball in Roberts’ hands, but the senior was assessed a charging foul with 2.7 seconds left. Shirley then made the shot of the night—a sea of red and blue storming the court after.
With the win ACS is 3-0 for the first time since 2008-09. While he is happy with how his team has played so far, Bonds is still expecting more from his Patriots as they hit the road for the first time this season on Friday night at Cumberland County.
“I think this team is starting to turn a lot of heads,” Bonds said. “I think we knew that going in, but not a lot of other people did. Are we where we need to be? No. We’re excited about being 3-0, but there is a lot of basketball left. We need to keep focusing on what we’re doing, and get better at what we’re doing.”
