Standouts: McArthur Mustangs @ St. Thomas Aquinas
Over in Fort Lauderdale, the McArthur Mustangs (Hollywood) defeated the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders 66-54. The Mustangs came out of the starting gate on fire up 22-8 led by Tyshaun Daniels with eight points. The second quarter proved to be…
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Continue ReadingOver in Fort Lauderdale, the McArthur Mustangs (Hollywood) defeated the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders 66-54. The Mustangs came out of the starting gate on fire up 22-8 led by Tyshaun Daniels with eight points. The second quarter proved to be another story as the Raiders took a counter punch to score 22 points to the Mustangs five. St. Thomas Aquinas got back in the game offensively with the 3-point shot and finished with seven total for the game. Leading the three-point barrage for St. Thomas Aquinas was junior guard Kyle Stathos. At the half, the Raiders carried the momentum to the locker room leading 30-27. Both teams played about dead even in the third quarter and went into the decisive final frame tied at 48. The Mustangs rattled off an 18-6 final quarter with points in transition and good defense. It also helped the Raiders 3-point shot faded away in the final eight minutes. In all, the Mustangs (6-3) saw four different players score in double figures.The loss drops the Raiders to 0-5, who despite the record have shown signs in certain quarters to be a very good team.
*Note* The Raiders were without junior forward Tristan Goldstein who is considered week-to-week with an arm injury.
Here are the standouts from this one:
Dominic Shaw – McArthur: The six-foot-three (2020) guard is a deadly shooter if left open and the Raiders coaching staff knew that coming in. Despite that, Shaw was able to find his stroke going three-for-five from long range. The senior finished with 13 points on the night. He is one of the key leaders for McArthur.
Mike Metzger – St. Thomas Aquinas: The six-foot-seven (2021) forward had a strong game in a losing effort for the Raiders. Metzger established a presence on the low block, carving out room with his body to knock shots in off the glass. The junior finish with 14 points and eight rebounds. Metzger also put in work on the defensive end with three blocks. I thought he had a good rapport going with fellow teammate Zach Zibelli.
Zach Zibelli: – St. Thomas Aquinas: The (2021) point guard did it all for the Raiders, scoring 14 points while playing tough defense against Shaw and company. On one scoring play, Zibelli showed good body control and a bit of english with the ball for a tough and-one layup. The junior is not afraid to take contact when going to the lane and puts a soft touch with the ball around the rim.
Damien Alford – McArthur: The (2020) forward gave the highlight of the night when he went baseline for a huge reverse slam that fired up the Mustangs bench. Alford, who is committed to Syracuse for football at wide receiver, finished with eight points and a team leading nine rebounds. The only thing stopping Alford from scoring more in this one was some foul trouble but the senior is an imposing threat when left on the court.
Jordan Howard – McArthur: The senior (2020) forward finished the night with a team leading 14 points. Most of the seniors scoring damage came in the second half when the Mustangs needed it most. Howard is a part of an elite senior class along with Shaw and fellow classmate Trevor Ward. Ward finished with 13 points of his own for the night.
Kyle Stathos – St. Thomas Aquinas: A big amount of credit for the Raiders momentum swing in the second quarter came at the hands of Stathos. The (2021) junior scored 14 points, 12 of which came from 3-point range. The Raiders moved the ball well to find Stathos, who did the rest of the damage by himself. Along with Stathos, senior guard Devin Aloma hit a pair of three’s to finish with eight points. The pair hit six of the Raiders seven 3-pointers on the night.
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