The Milan News-Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
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This close
Big Reds lose overtime thriller to Bears, 72-60
By Jerry Hinnen, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: January 10, 2008
The Milan boys' basketball team came as close as you can come to a win Tuesday night at home against Monroe-Jefferson. But at the final buzzer, the Big Reds were still looking for their first win.
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Brandon Duval's clutch three-pointer with eight seconds left sent Milan into overtime against the visiting Bears tied at 54, but the extra period belonged to Jefferson, who pulled away for the 72-60 win.
"Their coach told me afterward, 'I can't believe you're 0-8.' He said they had to play as well as they had all season," said Milan head coach Jeremy Davies, who while disappointed by the final outcome, did add that the Big Reds have nonetheless been making progress.
"The last three of four games we've been very consistent in our effort," he said. "Our defensive effort especially has been much better. We've started playing a different type of basketball, not trying to execute as many plays and going more run-and-gun, shooting more threes."
That new style is partly out of necessity, as starting junior center Erik Gunderson is currently sidelined via injury. But the Big Reds have taken to it, thanks in part to deadeye outside shooting that has seen Milan convert more three-point field goals than two-pointers in back-to-back games.
Milan opened Tuesday with back-to-back threes from Paul Irwin and Zach McGovern for a quick 6-0 lead and got two more from Lance Smith and Joe Ewer to help the Big Reds to a 16-6 edge at the end of the first quarter.
The lead would eventually grow to 11 points, Milan's largest, at 23-12 with 3:02 left in the first half on a Brandon Duval three. But a Jefferson three just before halftime trimmed the advantage to 26-19 at the break and the Bears would tie the game at 35 late in the third quarter after an 8-0 run.
The Big Reds would surge back in front with two Duval threes in the quarter's final 46 seconds to enter the fourth up 41-37. After an Irwin basket to open the quarter, however, the Bears would hit back-to-back threes and convert a three-point play for a 9-0 run and their first lead of the game, 46-43, with 5:52 to play.
Jefferson looked to have the game all but sewn up after two free throws that put them ahead 52-47 with 42.5 seconds remaining. But Irwin kept Milan alive with a three-pointer and following two Bear free throws, hit the front end of a one-and-one to bring the Big Reds within three, 54-51, with 19.8 seconds left.
Irwin missed the second, but the Big Reds forced a turnover as the visitors attempted to bring the ball upcourt. After a brief scramble to ball fell to Duval, who dribbled a step behind the arc and drilled his fourth three of the game to knot the game at 54. Jefferson's last-second shot missed and the teams went to overtime.
"It was a great, heads-up play by Brandon," Davies said. "We felt like we had momentum in our favor at that point."
The Big Reds would go on to take a 57-56 lead on an Irwin three 90 seconds into overtime, but from there it was almost all Bears as the Big Reds hit only one more shot from the field, Duval fouled out, and Jefferson connected on a series of trips to the free throw line to blow the game open.
Duval finished as Milan's leading scorer with 17 points, followed by Irwin with 16, McGovern with 12, Demetries Love with nine, and Smith and Ewer with three each.
Milan will look to break into the win column Thursday at Airport before hosting Napoleon Monday at 7 p.m.
St. Mary Catholic Central 78, Milan 59
Milan got a pair of 20-point scoring efforts from McGovern and Duval but couldn't keep the Falcons in check as homestanding SMCC stretched a 14-9 lead at the end of the first quarter into a 35-20 lead at intermission and stayed safely ahead from there.
Duval shot 6-of-8 from beyond the arc to finish with a season-high 21 points. McGovern hit five threes of his own to finish with 20. Smith and Irwin scored seven points each and Love and Lyle Tomaszewski added two points each.
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