Having already locked up the Northwestern District championship, the boys’ basketball
team at Meridian High School was playing for one purpose only on Monday night: the pride of
an undefeated regular season. On the road against a Skyline team that Meridian beat on a
memorable Will Davis buzzer-beater back on January 17 th , the Mustangs were set to face their
toughest test all year long.
Meridian controlled most of the game and fended off a few Skyline runs, as the Hawks
came back from a 17-10 deficit after the first quarter to trail 33-32 at halftime before later
erasing a much bigger Mustang lead. Meridian led 53-37 late in the third quarter, but the
advantage slowly whittled down, and Skyline took a 76-75 lead in the final minute before the
teams ultimately headed to overtime knotted up at 77. The Mustangs would dominate from there,
winning by a final tally of 90-81 to stay perfect on the year at 23-0.
Isaac Rosenberger scored 19 points to lead the Mustangs, while Davis added 18. John
Lyman (13), Billy Asel (10), and Jarrett Jardine (10) got into double figures as well. Jim Smith’s
squad will now return home and stay home as Meridian sets its sights on a deep postseason run,
with the first game of the regional playoffs set for Friday against an opponent to be determined.