A Maysville Miracle! Nichols’ Heave Sends Panthers Back to Dayton
SPRINGFIELD, OH
It is March, isn’t it? What would March be if not a little drama on the basketball court. The Division IV state semifinal between Maysville and Wyoming did not disappoint from Wittenberg University in Springfield.
A foul-filled first quarter saw the Cowboys race out to an 11-8 lead after eight minutes of play. While star point guard Gator Nichols continued to navigate the long and lanky Cowboys defense, Kane Roehrig reaped the benefits with a big second quarter from the outside en route to his 14 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and one steal. The teams raced to the locker room knotted at 22 in a back and forth physical first half.
It was a different story to start the second half however with the Panthers exploding out of the break on a 10-2 run to force an early Wyoming timeout, though the Cowboys would respond throughout the next six minutes of play, before sophomore Gavin Ferguson restored the Panthers three-point lead going to the fourth quarter.
“At this level, you can’t just have two or three players. You know, I feel like we have six or seven guys that can dribble, pass and shoot. We definitely have 12 guys that are absolute competitors” said head coach Dave Brown when asked after the game about the performances from Roehrig and Ferguson.
Despite the heroics from the young sophomore down the stretch, the Cowboys rallied back behind 62 combined points from Kellen Wiley, Darren Gray, and Devin Evans, and it remained all square at 61 to force overtime.
As it were though, an extra four minutes were not enough, as the Cowboys tied it at 67 with thirty seconds left in the extra frame, forcing double overtime from Wittenberg.
As the second period of free basketball rolled on, the Cowboys looked to seize control, taking a 71-67 lead with just over a minute and a half on the clock, but a three-pointer from Jordyn Watson (18 points) and a bucket from Nichols (29 points) restored a 72-71 Panthers lead with just over thirty seconds remaining.
With limited time on the clock, Wiley drove and finished to give the Cowboys a lead that would last a mere seconds.
The Panthers frantically moved the ball around, looking for someone to play hero. Off a missed there, Roehrig tapped it to Landon Iden who kicked it out to the junior who made himself a legend, as Gator Nichols beat the buzzer with a three to complete the “Maysville Miracle”, handing the Panthers a miraculous 75-73 win in double-overtime.
“I’m not going to lie, I kind of blacked out, I don’t remember all of what happened” said Nichols after the game. “Landon got the rebound, great rebound, it doesn’t happen without him. He kicked it out to me and I just made the shot.”
Once the Panthers catch their breath, they will begin preparations for UD Arena in Dayton on Friday afternoon at 4:15 pm, where they will play in the Division IV state championship game against either Glenville or Hawken. You will be able to tune into that game on Z92 radio.
