Playoff run ends with close area game
By Sam Waller
The Albany Lions saw their run in the Class 2A boys basketball playoffs come to an end Friday, Feb. 25 with a 60-64 loss to the Italy Gladiators in an area-round game at Weatherford High School.
“I felt that for the week we had, in terms of prep, we couldn’t have asked for much more than that,” coach Ryder Peacock said, noting the Lions were unable to practice for two days because of icy weather. “Going into a game like that, where your back’s against the wall already against a team that’s been there and has the experience factor on you, I thought the guys handled themselves very well.”
Albany finished its season at 11-7 overall, placing third in District 10-2A. The Lions advanced to the second round with a 52-47 bi-district victory Tuesday, Feb. 22 at Graham High School.
“Going into the season, what was important for me was the experience factor of playing together,” Peacock said. “Most of our team is back next year. I thought the most important thing was getting that cohesion, and I think we did that.”
District 12-2A champion Italy (22-4), ranked 16th in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 2A poll, advanced to take on No. 1 Lipan in the regional quarterfinals.
Bi-District Details
Against Petrolia, Albany trailed 15-13 at the end of the first quarter, but rallied to take a 23-21 halftime lead. The Lions held a 35-34 advantage after three periods before pulling away in the fourth.
“It’s always good to get that first playoff game under your belt,” Peacock said. “There’s always a little bit of nerves for kids who’ve never been there before. You never know what to expect. It was good in terms of getting the experience and getting the win.”
Cole Chapman led the Lions with 18 points, and Coy Lefevre added 13. The duo scored all 17 of Albany’s points in the fourth quarter.
“I thought the kids handled themselves very well,” Peacock said. “We started off a little slow, but as the game progressed, we worked our way into the action and did a good job of not panicking when things weren’t going our way.”
Peacock said the Lions’ defensive effort helped set the tone.
“Defensively, I thought we played pretty sound,” he said. “We gave up some things at times. At this level in the playoffs, especially when you’re playing a senior-laden team like Petrolia, they’re going to do some things you haven’t seen before.”
Area Game
Against Italy, the Lions battled back from an early 15-point deficit in a game that saw seven lead changes and three ties.
Chapman and Adam Hill both scored 20 points for Albany, with London Fuentes adding 12.
Italy scored 18 consecutive points, hitting four of their seven 3-pointers in the run, to go up 21-6 with 2:12 left in the first quarter. Albany scored the last seven points of the period to get the deficit down to eight points.
“We stuck with it, battled back, and got ourselves back in the game,” Peacock said. “We showed a little resiliency.”
The Lions trailed 31-17 midway through the second quarter, but closed the half with a 7-1 run to trail 32-24 at the break.
Albany opened the second half with a 21-5 run, regaining the lead at 39-37 on Chapman’s 3-pointer with 2:55 left in the quarter. The Lions led 45-37 before the Gladiators regrouped to score the last nine points of the quarter to take a 46-45 lead. Italy scored three times in the last 40 seconds, taking advantage of two Albany turnovers.
“I thought experience paid off for Italy,” Peacock said. “They didn’t panic, but we didn’t panic either. There were some moments where they could have built a bigger lead, and our guys just stayed the course and kept themselves in the game.”
The Lions took their last lead at 48-46 on a Fuentes 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter and tied the game at 53-53 on a 3-pointer by Lute Wheeler with 4:55 remaining. It was still a two-point game inside three minutes, but Italy closed things out by making five of its last nine free throws. The Gladiators finished 10 of 19 at the line, while Albany was 6 of 15.
Albany’s last chance went awry when Fuentes’ potential tying 3-pointer wouldn’t fall with six seconds left. Italy got the rebound, was immediately fouled, and made one of two free throws to seal the outcome.
ALBANY 52, PETROLIA 47
ALBANY – London Fuentes 8, Coy Lefevre 13, Cole Chapman 18, Adam Hill 9, Luke Marshall 4.
Petrolia 15 6 13 11 - 47
Albany 13 10 12 17 - 52
ITALY 64, ALBANY 60
ALBANY – London Fuentes 12, Cole Chapman 20, Adam Hill 20, Luke Marshall 3, Lute Wheeler 3, Lanxton Viertel 2.
Italy 21 11 14 18 - 64
Albany 13 11 21 15 - 60
