Matt Wright’s shot from the middle of the lane broke the hearts of Iola High’s Mustangs and their fans here Tuesday night.
The Mustangs had just taken the lead, 44-43, on a five-point possession with just under 11 seconds in the game. Levi Ashmore’s three-point shot was airborne when teammate Jerrik Sigg was fouled.
Ashmore’s trey was good and counted. Sigg stepped to the free-throw line and dropped in both ends of a one-and-one.
Fort Scott High’s Tigers got the basketball up court and called a timeout with 8.5 seconds left.
“We defended that last possession well. Braden (Larson) stood his ground inside on the drive and we tipped the ball out. Unfortunately, they got the ball and got the shot at the end to win,” said Bill Peeper, Mustang head coach.
Cameron Woodring drove the lane but his shot was tipped by Larson’s hands. Wright was in the lane, claimed the basketball and got the shot off before the buzzer sounded. Wright’s bucket sent the Tigers home with a 45-44 win.
Iola got out to a solid start, leading 6-1 at the midway mark of the first quarter. A three-pointer by Fort Scott’s Johnathan Stark tied the game a 8-8. Iola was up 10-9 at the quarter break.
The second period saw the Tigers take a 14-10 lead. A basket by Sigg sent the Mustangs on a 12-point run.
Clint Heffern drove the lane then dished the basketball off to Christian Kauth for a short jumper. Kauth sank two free throws then Ashmore scored on a layup.
Sigg went to the rim again for two and Corey Taylor hit a baseline jumper. The Tigers’ Tyler Adams drilled a three-pointer with 1:35 left to end the Mustang run.
That’s where the first-half scoring ended. The Mustangs were up 22-17 at halftime.
Adams led the Tigers on a 15-3 march in the third quarter. Iola did not hit a field goal in the period until Heffern scored with 1:01 left. Iola faced a 32-25 deficit headed into the final eight minutes of play.
“We had one of those third quarters we don’t want to have. We were lethargic. We didn’t move well at either end and did not play help defense, allowing them to get some easy baskets on us,” Peeper said.
“But these guys have a lot of scrap and fight in them.”
Ashmore scored off a steal for Iola and Kauth nailed a three-pointer. The Mustangs chipped away at the Tiger lead.
