Toll Gate too much for MSC

Undefeated Titans hand Mount 2nd straight defeat

WARWICK – The Mount St. Charles boys basketball team succeeded in throwing a major scare in the direction of a Division III unbeaten on Monday night, but Toll Gate held on for a 44-41 win.

The Mounties (6-3, Division III) had a chance to force overtime after the Titans’ Francisco Lopez missed the second of two free throws with 10 seconds left. Mount’s Jordan Perry came off a screen at the top of the key, took one dribble, and let fly a shot that came up short as the buzzer sounded.

With that, the Titans improved to 9-0 in league play. Brandon Scott led the victors with 17 points while Kavin Simpson added

12 points. Jack Bennett was Mount’s top point getter with 12.

Holding one of the top teams in the league to just 44 points with 19 coming after halftime was certainly a bright spot for the Mounties. The downside was that Mount managed just one field goal over the final seven minutes. It was certainly a big one as Bennett hit a three from the corner that made it a 43-41 game with 14.6 seconds left.

“They’ve got some size and do a nice job as far as shrinking the court a bit,” said MSC head coach Henry Coleman, “but our kids battled right to the end. I couldn’t be prouder of the fight they showed, especially against an unbeaten team.”

The Mounties (6-3, Division III) gave the Titans one too many second-chance opportunities in the first half and that helped the home team enjoy a 25-17 lead at halftime. The second half saw MSC do a much better job in holding Toll Gate to just one shot, though the Titans were able to get to the foul line down the stretch and finished the game missing just two of their 16 chances.

Mount turned the ball over four straight times over a two-minute stretch but it was the last miscue that proved costly. It led to a three-pointer from Scott and that helped the home team grab a 41-35 lead with 2:42 left.

Two free throws apiece from Isaiah Lee and Tristan Cox helped cut Toll Gate’s lead to two (41-39) with 1:14 left, but that’s as close as the Mounties would come.