Mustangs Slip by Lions, 67-55
By Will Johnson
Messenger Reporter
LOVELADY – The Lovelady Lions welcomed the Slocum Mustangs to town on Friday of last week for a game with playoff implications for both teams.
The Mustangs are trying to keep pace with the Grapeland Sandies for a shot at first place in the district while the Lions are fighting for their playoff lives.
For a while on Friday, it looked as if the Lions might pull off a major upset but a strong fourth quarter from the Mustangs helped them pull out the 67-55 win.
The game started off fairly even as the two teams battled to a 10-10 tie after the first eight minutes of play.
Seth Murray and Morgan Thrasher both scored four points for Lovelady while Slade Murray dropped in two.
Josh Ives and Chase Wilson had three apiece for the Mustangs while Andrew Abernathy and Colby Thornton had two each to bring the first quarter scoring to a close.
The second quarter saw the Mustangs open up a six point lead before halftime. Ives had five in the period while Wilson and Travis Neal both had four. Three other Mustangs – Abernathy, Thornton and Zack Bennett – all had two as Slocum took a 29-23 lead into the locker room at the break.
Seth Murray
Jaedin Watts caught fire for the Lions in the second quarter as he scored nine of Lovelady’s 13 points. Kaven Rollo and Shamar Terry both chipped in a basket to help keep the Lions within striking distance.
As the second half got underway, Lovelady began to fire away from the three-point line. Seth Murray hit four threes as part of his 14 third quarter points. Watts also hit from downtown while Rollo and Slade Murray both had two points. Terry chipped in a free throw to help trim the Slocum lead to five.
Ives paced the Mustangs with nine points while Neal and Wilson both had four. Abernathy and Thornton accounted for the other four points to help keep the Mustangs in front by a score of 50-45 at the end of three.
The fourth quarter saw Slocum begin to pull away from Lovelady. Thornton worked inside for six while Ives had five. Wilson netted four and Neal had two points to close out the fourth quarter scoring for the Mustangs as they held on to win by a final score of 67-55.
The Lions fourth quarter points came from Seth Murray and Morgan Thrasher with four apiece while Slade Murray converted two of two from the line.
On the game, the Lions were led by Seth Murray with 22 points. Jaedin Watts knocked down 12, Morgan Thrasher had eight and Slade Murray had six. Kaven Rollo put in four and Shamar Terry had three to round out the Lovelady point production.
The Mustangs had four players in double-figures as Josh Ives led the way with 22 points. Chase Wilson poured in 15, Colby Thornton worked inside for 12 and Travis Neal had 10. Andrew Abernathy put in six and Zack Bennett added a basket to round out the Slocum scoring.
The Lions were back in action on Tuesday as they traveled to Groveton for a game against the Indians. As of press time, however, the score was unavailable.
The Mustangs had a bye on Tuesday but will be back in action on Friday, Feb. 7 as they host the Groveton Indians.
Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].
