Thursday, March 04, 1999
Madeira goes old-school to defeat Reading
BY DAVE SCHUTTE
Enquirer contributor
Madeira won the Division III sectional championship Wednesday the old-fashioned way.
“That's the way we used to play the game,” Madeira coach Jim Reynolds said following the Mustangs' 73-49 victory over Reading before a near-capacity crowd at Sycamore.
“We went to what I call a five-three offense in the fourth quarter. It's five players in motion with the ball reversed at least three times before shooting.”
Tied 43-43 early in the fourth quarter, Madeira's newly found offense proved effective, with the Mustangs going on a 20-2 run to break open a close game.
“We came from 10 points back and we lost our legs during the comeback,” Reading coach Rich Bensman said. “We then made several bad passes and commited several crucial turnovers.”
Madeira held a 43-41 advantage entering the fourth quarter, but Reading's Brian Blevins scored on a layup with 7:15 remaining.
But during the next 3:02 of the game, Nate Parkhouse and Ken Fields each scored six points, catapulting the Mustangs into a 56-43 lead.
“I was worried after Reading went up 41-40 late in the third quarter because our kids lost their composure,” Reynolds said. “I called two timeouts for the first time to settle them down.”
Unlike Reynolds, Parkhouse wasn't concerned.
“We've been here before,” Parkhouse said. “We knew Reading would make a run and it was just a matter of keeping our composure.
Another factor was Madeira's defense, which kept outside pressure on the Blue Devils throughout the game, forcing many low-percentage shots and 19 turnovers.
“We averaged 80 points a game early in the season. We didn't pay attention to defense,” sophomore center Bret Underwood said. “But after our loss (to Finneytown), we bought into it.”
Reading had the firepower early in the game, taking a quick 8-4 lead before Ken Fields and Underwood came off the bench, combining for 10 points and a 16-13 lead.
It was back and forth during the second and third quarters until Madeira took control to post a third win over the Blue Devils. Madeira won the regular-season games 56-48 and 69-60.
Madeira placed four players in double figures with Fields scoring 20 points and Underwood 12 while leading scorer Todd Schlensker (20 point average) had an off night with 11.
“Every player has games like this,” Schlensker said. “But when one of our players is off, another always steps up and that's what happened tonight.”
Madeira advances to the district championship game next week at the University of Dayton Arena. The Mustangs will play the winner of Friday's game between East Clinton and Jamestown Greeneview.
READING (48) — Caudill 1 2 4, Berter 6 4 18, Blevins 3 2 8, Harris 0 1 1, Hayes 4 0 8, Wilking 1 2 4, Bothe 2 0 6. Totals: 17 11-17 49.
MADEIRA (73) — Schlensker 4 3 11, Tudor 1 0 2, McConnaughey 1 0 3, Cohen 1 0 3, Fields 5 6 20, Parkhouse 5 1 11, Dinsmore 2 1 5, Newberry 1 5 7, Underwood 5 2 12. Totals: 25 18-28 73.
Reading ....... 13 11 17 8—49
Madeira ....... 16 18 9 30—73
Three-point goals: R—Berter 2, Bothe 2. M—McConnaughey, Cohen, Fields 4. Records: M 21-1.
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