High school showdown: Myers Park goes for upset. Independence looks for playoff spark
The boys’ basketball team from Independence High, the reigning N.C. 4A state champion, has lost three of its past six games.
Friday night, the Patriots must beat Myers Park at home to win at least a share of a Southwestern 4A conference title that they seemed to have locked up a few weeks ago.
But after winning 25 straight regular-season conference games, dating to last season, the Patriots have lost two of their past three.
“We still play in a really good conference with some really good coaches that have really good teams,” Independence coach Preston Davis said. “We have some veterans, but the guys are still learning and going through the fire. So teams have caught us, and we’re still looking to correct some mistakes and get ready for the postseason, but we’ll be OK.”
There has not been a repeat N.C. 4A state champion since Winston-Salem Reynolds won three in a row from 2000-02. The last Mecklenburg County team to win back-to-back was West Charlotte in 1991 and ‘92.
Davis believed his team had a real shot to repeat this season. He said he felt that way after finishing holiday tournaments in December and after upsetting then nationally ranked Carmel Christian, at Carmel Christian, on Jan. 19.
And despite the recent struggles, he said his feelings haven’t changed.
“I like our talent,” Davis said. “We still have to tighten up some things and fine tune some areas, but we definitely have the talent to make a run. We’ve got veterans, young guns. We have a lot.”
Meanwhile, Myers Park has never won a state championship and is trying to win its first conference title in a decade. Since losing 42-38 at home to Independence on Jan. 22, Myers Park has won five of its past six games.
And heading into Friday’s season finale, the Mustangs are tied for first place with Independence and Butler (18-5, 11-2).
Butler, which has won five straight, will be favored in Friday’s game at East Mecklenburg (10-12, 3-10), which could give the Bulldogs a share of the league title.
“To have a chance to play for (the title) is what we’ve talked about all year,” Myers Park coach Scott Taylor said. “We won a playoff game last year ... and we’ve remained consistent and beaten the people we needed to beat and now we need to show we can beat the top teams consistently. Now you’ve got an opportunity to do that.”
▪ In the Southwestern 4A girls’ race, Butler (21-2, 12-1) holds a one-game lead over Harrisburg Hickory Ridge (19-3, 11-2). Butler must win at East Meck (5-15, 3-10) Friday to lock up the league title.
▪ In the SoMeck conference, Olympic’s boys (18-4, 11-0) have won 37 straight regular-season league games and have locked up the title. On the girls’ side, Providence (20-3, 10-1) is a half-game ahead of Ardrey Kell (19-5, 10-2), which has concluded regular-season play. Providence must beat rival South Meck (15-7, 8-3) to clinch the title.
▪ In the I-MECK 4A, North Meck (19-3, 12-1) is one game up on West Charlotte (17-5, 11-2 before Thursday’s Oak Hill game). If North Meck beats Lake Norman (10-13, 3-10) at home Friday, it wins the title. West Charlotte plays Hopewell (15-8, 9-4) at home.
On the girls’ side, Vance (21-2, 12-1) is one game ahead of Mallard Creek (18-4, 11-2). The Cougars win the title if they beat Hough (5-17, 1-12) at home Friday.
This story was originally published February 14, 2019 at 2:28 PM with the headline "High school showdown: Myers Park goes for upset. Independence looks for playoff spark."
