MC Tops Blazers with Game Winner From Rice
JACKSON, Miss. – Maryville Head Coach Raul Placeres recorded his 50th career win with style as the Scots pulled off a last-second victory on the road against Belhaven 84-83.
With 20 seconds to go in the second half, Belhaven's Jordan Judah made a tough layup in the paint to put the Blazers ahead 83-82. Maryville had one more shot and they capitalized. Myles Rasnick drove to the lane, and as the defense collapsed, he kicked the ball to Daryl Rice who hit a wide open jumper from the elbow to put MC ahead with seven seconds remaining.
Not only did Rice hit the game-winning shot, but he also caused a turnover on the Blazers' final possession to seal the game for the Scots.
"Daryl made the shot and then he caused their point guard to turn it over," Maryville head coach Raul Placeres said. "It was a big-time shot and then a big-time stop. I just love the fact that in those moments, Myles was having a great game, but he made the right basketball play. A lot of guys would have forced a shot, but he found Daryl open in his spot and it was the play of the game for us."
Rasnick was a force on offense for MC in this contest. The Knoxville product led the Scots with a career-high 32 points while picking up a team-high nine rebounds and leading the Scots with five assists.
Chase Morgan and Kordell Kah were the other Maryville scorers who reached double figures in the contest, scoring 10 points apiece. Charlie Cochran narrowly missed a double-double picking up nine points and recording 9 rebounds.
Maryville showed a lot of toughness in this game and had to battle against a strong shooting effort all game as the Blazers shot 52.1 percent (25-for-48) from the field, including 56 percent (14-for-25) in the second half.
"It was a great crowd and they shot it well – 10-of-13 from three," Placeres said. "Wow! All in all, we showed great grit.
"Logan Patterson, our freshman, just kept yelling to the guys that last huddle, 'We are built for this! We are built for this!' Not all freshmen would speak up like that. Kudos to him for stepping up in that moment and giving his teammates that confidence."
MC started the first half outscoring Belhaven 18-5 in the first five minutes of play. The Blazers quickly turned the tables though, going on a 20-8 run over the next seven minutes to bring the score to 26-25. Maryville would finish the first half 43-37, bringing a six-point lead into the break.
In the second half, Belhaven outscored the Scots 46-41. The Blazers trailed by 11 points with 4:06 remaining in the contest. They would go on a 17-7 run and take their first lead of the game with 20 seconds left before their comeback efforts were spoiled by Rice.
"We found a way to win on a really tough trip," Placeres said. "We wanted to give ourselves an opportunity this Friday to be playing for first place in the conference. It will be a great environment at LaGrange."
Maryville has a week off before traveling to first-place LaGrange on Friday with a chance to tie or take the conference lead. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.