Eagles Finding Their Groove, Win 2 of 3

Article written by Max Miesse | Photo credit: Max Miesse

The Clark State Men's Basketball team seems to find their groove of late. Finding only one win through their first 10 games, the Eagles have now secured two in their last three. Their record now sits at 3-10, a considerable improvement to their 0-7 start to the season.

Picking things up on March 12, the Eagles made their way to Terra State Community College for a rematch of their February 13 game that saw the Titans offense spread the ball around in route to a 90-74 victory. This time around though, the Eagles operated with much improved team defense and excellent offensive efficiency. Clark State's Jermayn Baxter led the team and put together his best effort of the season. He put up a team-high and career-high 26 points while shooting a blistering 65% from the field, going 11-17. The normally sharpshooting Mike Wallace struggled a bit at the line, only sinking four of his 11 free throws (36%), but otherwise was in typical high-powered form, scoring 24 points of his own.

Eagles' #4 Ryan Marchal kept the offense flowing, dishing out nine assists on his own. The most any Eagle has had in a single game all season. However, all this offense would be for naught without some defense, and the Eagles kept the Titans locked down nearly all night. Terra State only managed 61 points, it was only the second time all season that the Eagles kept their opponent under 70 points. It was an all-around excellent effort on both sides of the ball for Clark State, and they walked off with a 71-61 win.

Following their second win of the season, the Eagles marched off to Hocking College. It turned out to be a thriller of a match, as it was neck and neck the whole way. The Hocking Hawks clung to a 3-point lead at the half, 45-42, but the Eagles were step for step with them throughout the second half and as the clock hit zero, it was all tied up at 89.

Even with all the intrigue on the scoreboard, the box score showed a battle within the game between the Eagles' Mike Wallace and the Hawks' Xavier Johnson. Beyond the arch, there was mostly silence, but these two men combined for more than half of all the three-pointers in the game. It was almost a call and response, as one would sink a three; the other would come back with one of his own. Johnson and Wallace both finished the game with five three-pointers, but Wallace was ever so slightly more efficient, shooting 5-7 from beyond the arc while Johnson shot 5-8.

With 30 seconds remaining in overtime, the scoreboard read 97-99, Hawks lead. The Eagles had the ball though, but this was likely their last chance. Mike Wallace dribbled to the top of the key, and then dished it out to Ryan Marchal in the corner. He pump faked past one defender, step to the side, and with the Hawks' Ryan Archey Jr. in his face, Marchal put up a three that was right on the money. The scoreboard now read 100-99, Eagles lead. The Hawks could not answer in the remaining 20 seconds.  Clark State had secured their third win of the season, and with it the team's first win-streak.

Most recently, the Eagles played the rubber match of their three game season series with Kent State Tuscarawas. Kent State won the first game of the series in a 78-77 nail biter, and Clark State answered back by winning game two, 65-60.

Entering the deciding game with two wins in a row, the Eagles had momentum on their side. Kent State however had just beaten Penn Highlands in the best offensive performance of the year for the Golden Eagles. It was a primetime matchup of two teams operating at their highest level. The Golden Eagles came to play, as their duo of juniors DeJaun Lawrence and London Cobbs both put together double-doubles. Lawrence had 17 rebounds and 24 points while Cobbs contributed 12 rebounds and 20 points. While the Golden Eagles caught fire, the Clark State Eagles were smothered. Ryan Marchal played his role well, but was left to try and drag the offense to a win. Marchal's 33 points were more than half of the team's total, as no other Eagle scored more than nine. Marchal's six rebounds was tied for the team lead, and his three assists was the highest on the team as well. It seemed that he was the only player who got off the bus. The Eagles' offensive struggles included an 8-minute scoreless stretch at the end of the first half, and an inability to get to the line. Clark State only attempted five free throws all day. As the final buzzer sounded, the Eagles had lost 73-63. One game after scoring 100 points, Clark State put up their second lowest score of the season. Basketball is a strange sport.

The Eagles now sit at 3-10, and have four games remaining on the schedule. Next up is a game at Hocking College on Wednesday, March 24 at 8 p.m., followed by their last home game of the season vs. Terra State on Thursday, March 25 at 6 p.m.