The varsity basketball team played two region games sandwiched around a non-conference tilt last weekend that has left MUS still searching for a consistency needed to advance in the postseason.
Last Friday night, the ECS Eagles came to Ross M. Lynn in the first meeting of the year between the two schools. Despite shooting just 26% from the field for the game, the Owls took a 26-21 lead into the break and slowly extended that advantage in the second half to claim the 46-37 win. Ryan Baum led MUS in scoring as he tallied 19 points and 5 rebounds, while Will Saxton added 10 points and 5 more rebounds. The win was big to get the Owls to 2-1 in the region and give them some momentum headed into the next game, the River City Classic, against a powerful, talented White Station squad.
However, that momentum did not carry over to Saturday's game at the Spartan Palace as the Owls were overwhelmed from the tip-off. The Spartans played 14 players, and no one played more than 17 out of the 32 minutes. White Station got the Owls down 32-2 midway through the second quarter and then just cruised to the 59-36 win. Baum once again led the Owls in scoring with 13 points and added 11 rebounds, but MUS looked timid early and missed several easy shots against one of the best high-school teams in the country. Spartan guard Quinton Marion knocked the Owls out in the first quarter as he hit 5-6 from the three-point line as White Station never looked back to improve to 20-1.
This past Tuesday, MUS hoped to put the Spartan loss behind them as they returned to region play with a road game against Briarcrest. In a game that featured good shooting and excellent offensive execution, MUS overcame an early 27-16 deficit only to see Briarcrest score 13 out of the last 18 points and take the 65-62 victory.
With MUS up 57-52 midway through the fourth quarter, the Owls had control and momentum. Yet Saint's leading scorer, Atiba Alexander, stepped up to get Briarcrest back in the game. Alexander scored four of the Saints' next six points as Briarcrest pounded the ball down low, regained the lead, and held on.
Baum once again put up some good scoring numbers as he had 28 points and added 7 rebounds. Junior Phillip Blackett also had a breakout game as he logged significant varsity minutes and contributed 11 points, 7 rebounds, and some much-needed toughness; however, Briarcrest's 53% shooting from the field allowed them to put up enough points to down the Owls.
MUS (9-11, 2-2) next faces St. Benedict as Homecoming Week has arrived. The JV game starts at 6PM while the varsity tips at 7:30PM.