Hart-breaking loss: After 17-point comeback, Mountaineers fall in overtime in state playoffs

Published 12:02 am Friday, February 22, 2019

CHATSWORTH – In basketball, momentum can be a funny thing.

Playing at home in the Sweet 16 of the Class 3A state playoffs, the North Murray High School boys basketball season came to an abrupt end on Thursday night as the Mountaineers lost 56-54 to Hart County in overtime. In a game that featured wild swings of momentum for both teams, it was Hart County that made the plays in the final minutes to escape with the road victory and advance to the Elite Eight. North Murray, which accomplished a number of firsts this season including the school’s first-ever basketball region championship, finished its season 24-5.

After the game, North Murray guard Ladd McConkey summed up his team’s feelings.

“You never want to go out like this,” McConkey said. “You’re out there with your brothers and you never want to go out on a loss, but in the end there’s only one team who ends the season with a win.”

Early in the second quarter, the game seemed headed toward an anticlimactic finish. Hart County, using its high pressure defense, frustrated the Mountaineers en route to jumping out to a 23-6 lead with 5:48 remaining in the first half. Hart County jumped passing lanes and knocked down multiple outside shots early in the game, eventually forcing North Murray to switch to a man-to-man defense.

Despite the onslaught, North Murray battled back. Landon Burrell, who scored eight of his 13 points in the second quarter, kept North Murray in the game, and after McConkey’s basket plus the foul the Mountaineers trailed 26-19 at the half.

“They gave us all they had there at the beginning and we took it, but we’ve been there a few times this year,” McConkey said. “The game was there for us in the second half.”

Led by McConkey, who finished with a game-high 18 points, North Murray carried its momentum into the third quarter. With time winding down in the period, Ethan Lederer nailed a 3-pointer as time expired, cutting the Hart County lead to one point and sending the North Murray fan section into a frenzy. North Murray’s Chaisen Buckner, who finished with eight points, scored the first points of the fourth quarter and gave North Murray its first lead of the game. With the home crowd behind them, the Mountaineers built a 42-35 lead with five minutes to play.

“We been in that situation of being down like that since the first game of the year,” Buckner said. “Every time we’ve battled back, and usually won.”

The momentum shifted once more, however, this time in favor of Hart County. Again relying on their full court press defense, the Bulldogs fought back and with less than a minute to play tied the game at 46-46. Hayden Hulett found an open opportunity to win the game in regulation for North Murray with a 3-pointer from the top of the arc, but the shot fell no good and the game headed to overtime.

“Being down, coming back, taking the lead, all you can ask for is an opportunity to win,” North Murray senior Luke Griffin said. “We knew they were a very fast team, which is hard to simulate in practice. They took that big lead and we came back, all you can ask for is a chance to win the ball game.”

North Murray again retook a six-point lead in overtime at 54-48, but Hart County hit two of its six 3-pointers in the final two minutes and quickly tied the game. On their final possession, Elijah Robinson scored on a drive down the left side of the lane giving Hart County a two-point lead with three seconds to play. Robinson finished with a team-high 17 points.

McConkey had a look at a 3-pointer that would have won the game, but it fell short and the visiting Bulldogs rushed the floor in celebration. North Murray coach Tim Ellis gave credit to Hart County after the game and said he took responsibility for how the game ended.

Ellis said this year’s team was the most selfless team he’s ever coached, and praised the fortitude of his players who set multiple new heights for North Murray basketball this season.

“That’s what makes this group so special,” Ellis said. “Not one player on this team had a selfish bone in their body. Nobody cared who got the glory, they just wanted to win. That’s probably the one thing I’ll take away from this season.”