Preble Shawnee ousted in state semifinals
After Mason Shrout thanked everyone in Preble County and marveled at the closeness of his team, he walked down the ramp after postgame interviews, out of the tunnel and back into the bright lights of UD Arena.
Teammate Brody Morton, a sophomore who answered questions alongside Shrout, joined him behind their bench for one last look at the place they dreamed about playing in this week. Then Shrout turned to the previously filled seats behind the Preble Shawnee bench, waved his hand and reminded Morton about all the fans that had come to watch the Arrows play basketball.
“Just soaking it all in,” Shrout said, smiling at the good memories.
The Arrows, however, weren’t just happy to be in the Division III state semifinals. They wanted to win, practice one more day and play one more game. But they ran into one of Ohio’s premier programs, the
Cleveland Heights Lutheran East Falcons.
The Lue, as they are known, started fast like a team should playing in its seventh straight state tournament, scoring the first 17 points. The Arrows showed fight — a surprise to no one wearing red and black — and cut their deficit to 10 midway through the third quarter.
But East found the gas pedal again, made consecutive 3-pointers and put the Arrows away 63-44. Lutheran East (22-5) will play for its second straight state title and fifth overall at 2 p.m. today against Canal Winchester Harvest Prep.
Shrout’s career ends with over 2,000 points, as a two-time Southwest District player of the year and a Mr. Basketball finalist. His appreciation for his four years overflowed in his thank yous to teammates, coaches, fans and local businesses.
“It takes an army to get to the final four,” Shrout said. “It’s just a blessing growing up in my hometown and being able to get to the first final four. I can’t ask for a better team, better coaches, better community. It really took something like this to bring the county together.”
The bad memory of an otherwise enjoyable experience for the Arrows (24-4) will be the first quarter. East led 17-0 when Shrout made two free throws at the 1:16 mark. Coach Jake Turner said the slow start threw out the game plan and forced them to adjust.
“It was adjusting to their physicality and their speed,” he said. “They got into us, and we sped up on offense way too much, took some bad shots, missed some easy ones, gave up some easy ones.”
From there the Arrows played the Falcons evenly. Shrout, with a defender on him like glue the entire night, scored 18 points on 5-of-18 shooting. Morton responded best to the openings created by the attention paid to Shrout and scored 16.
“We’re weren’t getting across half court and putting our head down and just dribbling as fast as we could,” Shrout said of the last three quarters. “We got into our sets, and I feel like, when we get into our sets and we slow down, we can compete with anybody.”
They competed almost point for point for the final three quarters with a team led by Michigan State signee Jesse McCulloch, a 6-foot-10 matchup problem for any team. McCulloch, also a Mr. Basketball finalist, scored 16 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and blocked three shots. Ronald Taylor, another of East’s six seniors, had 21 points and seven rebounds.
East coach Sam Liggins knew he couldn’t let Shrout, his 24-point scoring average and hot tournament stretch roam free. He turned freshman Chris Hill loose on Shrout and supplemented with a couple others to keep Shrout from taking over the game as he had been doing.
Still, the Arrows scared the Falcons with their 12-4 run in the third quarter that made it a 10-point game. Liggins reminded his team that the game wasn’t over.
“They’ve got Mason Shrout over there, he’s a load,” Liggins said. “That guy can really fill it up. You know he’s going to leave it all on the floor.”