Oak Glen upsets Potters
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EAST LIVERPOOL -- Favored East Liverpool, which had an eight-point lead over cross-river rival Oak Glen entering the fourth period, failed to put the pesky Golden Bears away.
They made the Potters pay for it, upending them, 65-60, before a large homecoming crowd Tuesday night at the Potter Fieldhouse.
"I felt like we were up 8-10 points multiple times, but they kept chipping away," East Liverpool head coach Nate Conley said. "And then, we'd turn it over or we'd play bad for a possession."
With the win, Oak Glen improved its record to 10-7. The Potters, who just won the Buckeye 8 championship Saturday night over St. Clairsville, lost for only the fourth time in 17 games.
Tied 60-60 and in possession of the ball in the closing seconds, Oak Glen's Brayden Mineard was the hero of the night for the winners when he took a pass in the left corner and lofted a high-arching 3-pointer that swished through with 4.6 seconds left. It gave the visitors a 63-60 lead, and East Liverpool immediately called a timeout.
However, the Potters turned the ball over on the inbounds. The Bears missed the free throws but gained possession again, and Oak Glen's Gage Patterson was fouled with 0.7 seconds left. He converted both free throws to seal the five-point upset win.
"I just felt our whole team had been working so hard. I had to punch it in for the win," Mineard said of his game-deciding trey. "It felt like that was the game. It was a pure rush. It was a good one to win on the road after the tough schedule we've had."
"I'll be honest with you, it (the game-winning shot) wasn't for him (Mineard)," Oak Glen head coach Jerry Everly said. "But, he was the guy tonight. We always tell him he can shoot it, and tonight he did."
Conley agreed.
"You want to point fingers and make excuses. That's just part of life and part of the game, but sometimes you just have to say that was a big shot (by Mineard) and a good job by him," he said. "It was a good shot."
Everly felt his team has been battle-tested against a strong schedule.
"We've been in some tough battles against some top-notch teams," he said. "We've played North Marion and got beat at the buzzer, and they're No. 2 in the state. We just felt like if we stuck together, then those tough games would come our way, and tonight it did."
Zach Taylor took game-scoring honors for the Golden Bears with 22 points, including three of Oak Glen's five 5-pointers on the night. Patterson, a key member of the Golden Bears' state semifinal football team this past season, added 18 points, and Mineard finished with 10.
East Liverpool placed three cagers in double digits, led by Tim Neal with 14 points. Tresean Jackson added 13 markers, and Brennen O'Hara finished with 10 points.
East Liverpool led throughout the game, taking quarter-stop leads of 20-15, 36-34 and 52-44. The Potters led by as many as 11 points (28-17) in the second period and still led the Golden Bears by seven points (60-53) following a free throw by Jackson with 4:30 left in the game.
But, as it turned out, it was the last point the Potters would score, as Oak Glen outscored the hosts, 12-0, in the final 4:30 to secure the comeback win.
"I thought we played good at times. We were up but we just didn't execute down the stretch," Conley said. "We were going to hold it for one shot (in the closing minute), but we had an offense in there where if you have a layup, you're allowed to shoot it, and the player thought he had a good look and it rims out. And, the next thing Oak Glen hits the 3.
"Hats off to Jerry. He had his kids ready. I felt like we were already set on the OVAC and just won a championship, but that's just another excuse. Sometimes you have to say good job Oak Glen."
Another area that hurt the Potters were turnovers. East Liverpool had 16 turnovers in the game.
GAME NOTE
East Liverpool won the junior varsity game, 45-36, as Jerome Deal led the Potters with 12 points. Jontae Howard paced the Bears with 11 points.
UP NEXT
Oak Glen: Hosts East Fairmont on Saturday.
East Liverpool: Travels to Minerva on Friday.
Oak Glen 65, East Liverpool 60
Oak Glen 15-19-10-21 -- 65
East Liverpool 20-16-16-8 -- 60
OAK GLEN: Gage Patterson 7-3-18, Blake Perez 3-1-7, Konner Allison 0-0-0, Zach Taylor 9-1-22, Jacob Clark 3-0-6, Brayden Mineard 4-1-10, Jontae Howard 1-0-2. TOTALS: 27, 6-10: 65
E. LIVERPOOL: Brennan O'Hara 2-4-10, Timmy Neal 7-0-14, Gannon Irvine 3-0-8, Tresean Jackson 5-2-13, Zavea Green 1-0-2, Nick Woodyard 3-1-7, Levi George 0-0-0, Cole Dailey 2-0-4, Devin Toothman 1-0-2. OTALS: 24, 7-12: 60.
3-POINT GOALS: Oak Glen 5 (Zach Taylor 3, Gage Patterson 1, Brayden Mineard 1). E. Liverpool 5 (Brennen O'hara 2, Gannon Irvine 2, Tresean Jackson 1). FOULS: Oak Glen 15, E. Liverpool 12.