Mustangs Nip Panthers In Playoff Home Opener

“That one, I did draw up,” the Mustangs’ rookie head coach said, wiping his brow from an exhausting win in the first round of the Bull Run District playoffs over visiting Rappahannock High School, 62-56. The third-seeded Mustangs (who finished the season 10-11 and an even 5-5 in the district) now travel to Manassass Park (9-1 in Bull Run Play) tonight.

Broderick was referring to a set play he concocted on a Mustang inbound pass that found the junior guard Greene wide open for a layup to take a 59-56 lead with less than a minute to play. As everyone dispersed on the “break,” the Panthers clung to senior star Evan Hamme while Greene snuck in untouched for the lay-in. The team and crowd were energized and the Mustangs never looked back.

“We have nothing to lose against Manassas Park,” Broderick said. “Without Sean Snider and Reggie Whittaker [starters on last year’s team who transferred schools] and Matt Williams [last year’s leading scorer who has been injured all year] no one gave this squad any chance.”

That chance that the Mustangs didn’t think they have can be extended with a win tonight, that would put Mason in the Bull Run District final on Friday.

Rappahannock entered Tuesday’s game as the worst team in the District, but still a scary matchup for the Mustangs. The Panthers’ “Big Three” of John Leisen, Ethan Berry and Jason Jenkins—three quick, aggressive and sharp-shooting guards—gave Broderick fits in strategizing and the team its share of fits on the court.

The trio combined for 38 of the Panthers’ points and were integral in various Panther runs. Despite the games intensity and closeness—Mason’s largest lead was 10, in the second-quarter—the Panthers didn’t take a lead until Leisen hit a three in the second half. Unfazed, Mason retorted with an 11-2 run. And so the game went for the full 32 minutes.

Mason came out with a full-court press in the first half that gave them a 10 point cushion. But the press resulted in a ferocious, upbeat tempo that didn’t suit the Mustangs’ style of play. As a result, the home team turned the ball over 20 times in the first half. And, despite the tempo, Rapp couldn’t take advantage and trailed by a point at the break.

Berry and Jenkins came out shooting well in the second half and the Panthers again controlled the tempo in the third quarter. However, Rapp led for a grand total of 48 seconds the entire game.

Mason managed to play a more controlled offense as the second-half progressed. Juniors Colin Molano, Sam Ehsani and Robert Kuhn played considerable minutes and, according to Broderick, “made contributions that don’t necessarily appear on the stat sheet.”

Molano’s contributions are the most visible. While Hamme, the team’s leading scorer on the season and one of Mason’s all-time leading scorers in his career quietly dumped in 23 points, Molano patiently kept firing from behind the three-point arc. He connected on his fourth attempt in the third quarter and followed it with two more consecutive three pointers in the final stanza, all coming at crucial times.

Molano’s most crucial shot came from the charity stripe. With his team up by three with only 11 seconds left, he sank the first of two free-throws, putting the Panthers in a difficult four-point hole and effectively ending the game.

“We made our free throws down the stretch and shot well from the line all night,” said Broderick, whose team shot 12-19 from the free throw line. The percentage is still low, but much higher than their season average.

“It was emotional for the players, but we’re going to be OK and ready to go Thursday,” said Broderick. “There’s no pressure at all on us against Manassas Park. We’re ready. We have nothing to lose.”