Stone moves on
In the early stages Tuesday night’s 3A South quarterfinal game against the visiting Lackey Chargers, the Thomas Stone Cougars seemed to be just a step behind.
Lackey’s Dominic Phillips got off to a quick start, and after a three-ball early in the second period the Chargers, the region’s No. 9 seed, led by 10 points. But fronted by a group of seniors that has plenty of playoff experience and back-to-back regional titles on it’s resumé, it was no time for panic on the Cougars’ bench.
“There was a time tonight where I called a timeout and said nothing to them,” Stone coach Dale Lamberth said. “What can I say to them? Four years? They know what they’re doing. They still need to be yelled at you’re in the wrong spot, all of that. But for the most part you’ve got to gut this one out.
“They don’t need me to tell them that. After four years, do I have to tell you to dive after a ball?”
The top-seeded Cougars resolve showed as the game played out, and Stone went on to post a 66-58 win over its Southern Maryland Athletic Conference rival. Stone will host fourth-seeded Friendly, a winner over Huntingtown on Tuesday, in a regional semifinal at 7 p.m. on Thursday night.
“I think it was heart and experience,” Stone senior Dytanya Johnson said of the difference in the showdown with the Chargers. “Lackey’s a young team. They have a lot of talent, definitely, but them maybe not being there as much as we have before kind of gives us an edge. And also, I think we’re tired of losing. I think everybody on this team is tired of coming up short. We’re willing to do whatever it takes.”
Two seasons ago, with this year’s crop of seniors young contributors, Stone finished as the 4A state runner-up in a heartbreaking state final. A season ago the Cougars met a similar fate in the 4A semifinals, and this year looked towards the postseason to take another swing. But when their postseason finally began on Tuesday, it was Lackey (10-11) that came out swinging.
Phillips scored 14 first-half points and led Lackey to a quick lead. The Chargers dictated action in the early going, and led 23-13 after a Phillips three-pointer early in the second period.
But showing that experience, Stone (20-1) shrugged off the sluggish start, and proceeded to outscore the visitors by a 22-9 count through the rest of the half to take a 35-32 lead into the break.
“We just started off the game a little slow,” said Stone’s Leandre Eackles, who finished with a team-high 14 points. “We weren’t in the mindset to win the game, so we had to refocus.
“We just had to stick to the stuff that we do: run, rebound and play defense. Defense wins games.”
Stone slowly gained command of the contest in the second half. Lackey did make a run, as Greg Gibbs’ three closed the gap to 47-46 with 1 minute 26 seconds left in the third quarter, but Stone followed by scoring the game’s next six points to reassert itself.
“Down at the end it came down to execution,” Lackey coach Greg Gibbs, Sr. said. “They executed their offense and their trapping defense better than we executed our offense and defense.”
Phillips, one of the key factors in the Chargers quick start, finished with a game-high 20 points but was held to just six points in the second half.
“I thought Jarvis [Travers], Leandre and Ronald [Sharpe] did a real good job of keeping him in front,” Lamberth said. “Even when he got by them he was always off-balance. That’s really all we wanted. We didn’t want him to get good looks straight up and down like in the first half.”
Following Eackles’ 14-point night, Johnson and Kendal Smith each scored 12, while Stephen Battle added 10.
Stone, this season’s SMAC champion, had taken an unblemished record into its regular-season finale against Great Mills a week prior. Great Mills, which pulled off a win at North County on Tuesday in 4A East regional action, ruined Stone’s quest for perfection and pulled off the upset. That left Stone, which as the 3A South’s top seed had a first-round bye, with a full week to stew over what had happened.
“We played a very hungry team. I think we can thank Great Mills for refocusing them for the playoffs,” Gibbs said. “I thought we played a good game, but in the end I think the better team won. I wish Jarvis, Dytanya and all those guys the best of luck.”
The regular-season loss may have changed the look to the Cougars’ record, but it did nothing to keep them away from their goals.
“It wasn’t our goal to go undefeated this year,” Lamberth said. “One of the goals was to win the SMAC, not to go undefeated.
“It kept things in perspective. It’s not the end.”
Added Johnson: “I think sometimes you go undefeated you lose sight of the big picture. In the beginning of the year, going undefeated wasn’t a goal of ours. It was to get to the big stage. Later on as we kept winning we were kind of like, ‘Maybe we can go undefeated.’ But I think it was a good wake-up call.”
Stone 66, Lackey 58
L 19 13 14 12
S 13 22 14 17
Lackey: Phillips 20, Williams 9, Bostic 6, Carroll 6, Gibbs 6, Gilbert 4, Powell 3, Mason 2, Turner 2
Stone: Eackles 14, Johnson 12, Smith 12, Battle 10, Travers 9, Sharpe 7, Briscoe 1, Williams 1
Free throws: Lackey 11-22; Stone 24-45
Three-pointers: Lackey 7 (Phillips 3, Gibbs 2, Powell, Williams); Stone 1 (Eackles)
E-mail Andy States at astates@smacsportsnet.com
Related posts: