Relying on a versatile inside game and their dynamic coach, the Chandlers Bears upset top-seeded Olmstead to win the championship of the Logan County
Middle School Basketball Tournament Friday at Logan County High School.
The Rams had beaten the Bears by double figures twice during the regular season, but when a trophy was on the line, Chandlers dominated by a 52-38
count.
Two Chandlers post players took charge of the paint. Matthew Walker was a consistent low post threat on offense while Ian Woodall was a rugged defender
and motivator. Quick forwards Michael Sydnor and Chase Denson were not only able to get rebounds but also to speed downcourt with the ball themselves
to convert boards into points.
Meanwhile Coach Stanley Fleming patrolled the sidelines as only he can. After having coached the Lady Bears to seven county championships, he switched
to the boys this year following the retirement of Coach William Swatzell, whose Bears lost to Auburn 59-48 in last year's finals. Chandlers returned
one guy who played in the 2009 championship game. Fleming knows how to get the most out of his teams come tournament time.
Olmstead, which suffered a disappointing finish after being the top team all season, was somewhat slowed by the illness of point guard Matt Harper, who
was trying to muster his energy while battling a stomach virus.
Early in the second quarter, it appeared Olmstead was going to prove the pre-tournament predictions to be correct. Chandlers led 10-9 on a three-point
play by Woodall, who collided with his former little league baseball teammate Harper on a drive to the basket. The call could have gone either way, but
Harper was whistled for blocking. Woodall not only hit the shot but also the free throw.
On the other end, though, Woodall was assessed his second foul 40 feet away from the basket with 16.3 seconds left in the first quarter, and he sat out
the entire second quarter.
With Woodall out of the way, Olmstead's Clint Knight went on an impressive scoring streak. His goal with four seconds showing gave the Rams an 11-10
lead at the first quarter stop. Then he hit a 3-pointer from the corner, followed by a 14-footer and a drive to the basket. Olmstead led 18-12 with
4:34 remaining in the half. Everything looked good for the favorites.
Chandlers came back. Walker and Sydnor each hit a pair of free throws and Hunter Anderson sank a 3-pointer to cut the lead to one. Sydnor's rebound
goal gave the Bears a 19-18 lead. Daniel Beaty's free throw tied it momentarily, but a long 3-pointer by Sydnor gave the Bears the lead for keeps at
22-19. He added a rebound bucket, and E.J. Offutt's free throw gave CMS a 25-20 lead at the half.
Walker took over the third quarter, scoring 8 points in the paint. One of his four goals came when Woodall saved the ball in to him; it was going out
of bounds. The Rams got a break when Woodall picked up his third and fourth fouls within four seconds of each other.
Olmstead came back from a 10-point deficit. Jacob Wood hit his second 3-pointer of the game, and Harper hit a shot to cut the lead in half at 36-31.
Sydnor scored, giving the Bears a seven-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
Deason scored the first three points of the fourth quarter, returning the lead to 10. Olmstead's Tucker Baldwin cut the margin to single figures twice,
but the Rams could never get closer that eight again.
Walker and Sydnor each scored 18 to lead the Bears. Knight had 15 for the Rams.
Those in attendance got to see most of the Great Lakes Little League regional championship team that night. Chandlers' Woodall and Olmstead's Caleb
Bruner, Wood, Harper, Baldwin, and Beaty, and Joe Holliday was introduced as a member of Olmstead's prize-winning academic team.
Championship
Score by Quarters:
1) OMS 11-10, 2) CMS 25-20, 3) CMS 31-25, Final)
Chandlers 52, Olmstead 38
CMS (52)
Michael Sydnor 18, Matthew Walker 18, Chase Denson 7, Ian Woodall 5, Hunter Anderson 3, E.J. Offutt 1, T.J. Lee, Austin Hyde, Trevor Brown, Ty
Burchett, Dalyn Chapman, Tanner Chapman, Micah Lindsey, Luke Woodall
OMS (38)
Clint Knight 15, Tucker Baldwin 8, Jacob Wood 6, Matt Harper 4, Trenton Williamson 2, Jose Garcia 2, Daniel Beaty 1, John Wilson Coots, Caleb Bruner,
Jake Landreth, Wesley Blick
Thursday Semifinals
The Bears' 50-38 win over Auburn the night before was by an almost identical score as the finals. Auburn led only once at 8-7 when J.R. Morrow made a
steal and took the ball the length of the court for a goal. Walker hit a goal to give the Bears the lead, and Auburn eighth grader Ben Wright hit a
free throw to tie the score at 9-9.
Sydnor then gave Chandlers the lead for good on a drive, and Woodall scored with nine seconds left in the quarter to make it 13-9 at the first stop.
Those two goals were the start of a 16-0 run for Chandlers, the number two seed. Sydnor scored 8 of his game-high 25 points in the quarter. Trevor
Brown also had two buckets in the quarter.
The Chandlers run came to an end at 25-9 when Jon-Clarc Todd swished a 3-pointer for the Tigers. Teammate Tahmir Graham put together a 3-point play,
and Morrow hit a shot. Chandlers' lead was 29-17 at the half.
Adam Wilkins' 3-pointer to start the third quarter reduced the margin to single digits. Sydnor hit a pair of free throws. Morrow answered with a trey,
and Graham drove for a goal and hit a free throw to cut the 15-point lead to six at 33-27 with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter. Chandlers scored
the final three points of the quarter to lead 36-28.
Chandlers kept building double-digit leads, but Auburn still threatened to come back in the fourth quarter. Wright's 18-footer cut it to 39-30, and
Wilkins hit 3 of 4 free throws as Woodall picked up his third and fourth fouls. Walker's 12-foot turnaround shot sent Chandlers ahead 45-34. Wright hit
a 12-footer before fouling out with 2:09. Todd's pair of free throws cut it to 45-38 with 1:09, but Chandlers scored the final five points of the game
to eliminate the Tigers.
Sydnor scored 9 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter. Walker finished with 10 points. Wilkins hit 4 of 7 free throws to lead Auburn with 11 points
while Morrow added 9. Chandlers hit only 8 of 21 free throws and the Tigers 11 of 20.
Score by Quarters:
1) CMS 13-9, 2) 29-17, 3) 36-28, Final)
Chandlers 50, Auburn 38
AMS (38)
Adam Wilkins 11, J.R. Morrow 9, Tahmir Graham 8, Jon Clarc Todd 5, Ben Wright 4, Nick Whittinghill, Hunter Britt, Joseph McGinnis,, Taylor Owens, Kenny
Cornist, Cole Stanley,
CMS (50)
Michael Sydnor 25, Matthew Walker 10, Chase Denson 6, Ian Woodall 4, Trevor Brown 4, B.J. Offutt 1, Lee, Anderson
Monday Semifinals
Coach Todd Gill's Rams outscored Adairville 14-6 in the third quarter and then held on for a 45-42 win to reach the finals.
Wood led Olmstead with 15 points, all of them coming in the first half; six of them came on a pair of 3-pointers. Six of Harper's 10 points came in the
second half, and Baldwin got 6 of his 8 in the last two quarters.
The game's top scorer was the Cardinals; Kevin Costello with 16 points. Brennan Summers added 13 for Coach Todd Webb's team. Costello scored 5 points
and Cody McLellan 4 in the final quarter for Coach Todd Webb's Cardinals. Adairville could have won the game with better free throw shooting. The
Cardinals' were 13 of 21 at the line with Summers going 6 of 9 and Costello 4 of 6.
Score by Quarters:
1) AMS 11-9, 2) OMS 36-26, 3) OMS 40-32, Final)
Olmstead 45, Adairville 42
AMS (42)
Kevin Costello 16, Brennan Summers 13, Cody McLellan 8, LeAundre McCarley 2, Taylor Blakemore 2, Austin Rayno 1, Garnett Abbott, Colby Nichols
OMS (45)
Jacob Wood 15, Matt Harper 10, Tucker Baldwin 8, Clint Knight 6, Trenton Williamson 6, Landreth, Blick. Coots, Bruner, Beaty
Thursday Opener
The Cardinals advanced to the second round with a convincing 42-29 win over Lewisburg. Adairville, which was the number four seed, was especially
strong in the middle quarters. McLellan hit a pair of treys in the third quarter and three in the game on the way to 14 points. Summers added 8 of his
13 points in the second and third quarters. He also hit a 3-pointer.
The Rangers were led by sixth grader Garrison Rosser, who hit a pair of 3-pointers in the second half on the way to a team-high 10 points.Another sixth
grader, Quentin Nash, hit a trey, as did eighth grader Cyle Forgy.
Adairville struggled at the foul line, getting only 4 of 18 free throws to fall. Lewisburg was 5 of 10.
Score by Quarters:
1) AMS 10-5, 2) 22-12, 3) 35-21, Final)
Adairville 42, Lewisburg 29
LMS (29)
Garrison Rosser 10, Chyle Forgy 8, Dalton Furlow 5, Quentin Nash 5, Jackson Wells 2, Layton Morgan, Jarrett Hamilton, Jordan Hendrix, Noah Wells,
Lennon Reed, Blake Taylor
AMS (42)
Cody McLellan 14, Brennan Summers 13, Kevin Costello 8, Austin Rayno 2, Alex Henson 1, Blakemore, Nichols, Abbott, Jordan Campbell, Jackson Campbell,
Alex Hughes, Sedale Shannon, Jacob Burton