The Mathews High School varsity boys’ basketball team played a thriller on its home court last Wednesday, coming back from a nine-point halftime deficit to force two overtime periods against Carver Academy. In the end the Devils fell to the visiting Wolverines, 62-57.
Mathews suffered another district loss Tuesday, falling at King and Queen, 89-81. The junior varsity Devils split the games, falling to Carver and beating the Tigers.
Carver
The varsity contest against Carver began with a Senior Night celebration, with Timmy Raphael, Jon Lewis, Noah Lewis and Will Hutcheson recognized.
Mathews had its difficulties in the first half, trailing by as much as 16 points before closing the gap to nine points at the break.
Still trailing by 11 as the fourth quarter began, the Blue Devils orchestrated a comeback. Carver suffered from a series of turnovers, which translated to a large momentum swing and several easy buckets for Mathews. Midway through the fourth, team captain Caleb Thomas fouled, but the home squad continued to battle. The Blue Devils were down two points with only seconds remaining, having limited the Wolverines to only 4 total points in the fourth quarter. A difficult layup from Landon Green fell as time expired, tying the score at 44-44 and sending the game into OT.
Mathews had the opportunity to win in the first overtime period, as Green hit a pair of foul shots to give the Devils a two-point lead. With seconds remaining, a defensive miscommunication for Mathews resulted in an open layup for Carver, sending the contest into a second overtime.
Both teams were showing signs of fatigue and the defense began to loosen on both ends. Carver managed to sink its important shots, while the Devils’ rimmed out.
Green led Mathews in scoring with 16 points. Caleb Thomas was next with 11, followed by Christian Williams with 10, Hutcheson and Nasir Thomas both with seven, Raphael with three, Jackson Putt with two, and Braden Hunley with one.
The JV contest wasn’t nearly as exciting as Carver opened a 15-3 first-quarter lead on the way to a 48-22 victory. Daveon Johnson led the Devils with seven points. M.J. Brooks was close behind with six. The remaining points came from Jamarri Henderson (four), Jamir Forrest and Colin Frazier (two points each) and Brandon Gandee (one point).
King and Queen
In a high-scoring, fast-paced affair filled with numerous steals, turnovers and fast-break opportunities, King and Queen came out on top of the Devils, 89-81. Mathews came back several times and held a one-point lead with three minutes left to play (the team’s first lead since the opening quarter). But the comeback fell short.
Williams and Caleb Thomas were the top scorers, with 21 and 18 points, respectively. Green came next with 11, followed by Nasir Thomas with nine, Justin Ashberry and Hutcheson both with seven, Hunley with six and Putt with two.
The outcome was better for the JV Devils, who posted a 41-38 victory. It was a closely-fought game, with the Tigers holding a 21-19 halftime lead. King and Queen was held to two points in the third quarter, giving Mathews the winning edge.
Forrest topped the scoring column with 12 points. He was followed by Johnson with nine, Henderson with seven, Tae Legette with six, Brooks with five, and Andrew Zabel with two.
The regular season ended last night against the visiting Lancaster Red Devils. Post-season play begins Friday for the varsity team, but the Tidewater District bracket has yet to be announced.