McDonald stuns Lowellville on last-second layup

March 10, 2015 at 12:05a.m.

high school tournament basketball

STRUTHERS

Like just about every undersized basketball player, McDonald senior Anthony Pugh (generously listed at 5-foot-8) has imagined scoring the winning basket in a big game.

Those fantasies never included him producing the points with a reverse layup.

“Backyard games, it was always a jump shot,” Pugh said. “It was never a layup, it was always a jump shot.”

In the final six seconds of Monday’s Division IV district semifinal against Lowellville at Struthers Fieldhouse, the score was tied when McDonald’s Jake Reckard rebounded Alex Harklerode’s missed free throw and fired a pass to Pugh.

“I thought he was going to either drive for the layup or kick it out to me for a jump shot,” Pugh said of Reckard. “When he threw it up to me, I saw it was me against [a defender] one-on-one.”

Pugh didn’t stop, driving to the basket as Cole Beatty pursued. Pugh slowed up and shifted course under the basket, laying the ball in for McDonald’s 69-67 victory, something that seemed impossible when the Rockets led by 16 in the third quarter.

“I think he thought I was going to go up [on my] left so I wrapped it around,” said Pugh who admitted he didn’t see the ball go through the net. “Honestly, I didn’t.

“When I flipped it in, I fell on the ground. I saw the [McDonald] fans started going crazy so I just kind of assumed it went in.”

Pugh’s basket capped an amazing comeback from a 48-32 deficit in the third quarter. Jake Reckard scored 18 of his 21 points in the second half to spark the turnaround.

“Unbelievable,” McDonald head coach Jeff Rasile said after qualifying for the district final for the 11th time in his 11 seasons with McDonald. “Beatty was right on his butt. Anthony made a big play.”

In the third quarter, Rasile benched Pugh as the Rockets (19-5) opened up their big lead.

“I turned it over and that was a crucial time to turn it over,” Pugh said. “He sat me down because we can’t have those mistakes.”

Reckard scored 13 points in the third quarter as the Blue Devils (17-5) sliced the Rockets’ lead to 52-47.

Lowellville kept the lead until there were 40 seconds remaining.

Brad Woodley hit a 3-pointer from the baseline to tie the game, 64-64.

After the Rockets’ Paolo DePasquale made two free throws, Woodley struck again for another 3-pointer for the Blue Devils’ first lead.

With six seconds remaining, Harklerode tied the game with his first free throw.

The Rockets could not have started much better, racing out to a 19-10 lead after one quarter and a 34-26 lead at halftime.

Harklerode opened the second half with a pair of 3-pointers and added another during a 6-0 run for the 16-point edge.

Reckard then took charge.

“It’s a team effort,” Reckard said. “The press only works when all five guys are working as hard as they can.”

Rasile said the Blue Devils feed off Reckard.

“He can just fill the stat sheet — points, rebounds, assists, steals,” Rasile said. “Jake kind of went through the motions in the first half, just three points.

“Second half — how many rebounds, how many steals?” Rasile said. “He’s the key to our team during that pressure [defense].”

Pugh finished with 14 points while Woodley had 12 and Matt Howard, who fouled out midway through the fourth quarter, scored eight.

With Howard out, Pugh was back in.

“It’s incredible,” Pugh said. “We’re going to enjoy it tonight but we’re going to have a war on Friday no matter who wins [tonight].”

Pugh was referring to tonight’s other semifinal between St. Thomas Aquinas and Western Reserve.

For the Rockets, DePasquale led with 17 points. Harklerode scored 15 points while Tyler Barone had 14 and Beatty and Nick Piccirillo each had nine.