Tuesday’s Rewind: Myers Park falls in NCHSAA. Alabama commit Drake Maye plays final game
At some point during this N.C. 4A playoff, Myers Park junior forward Drake Maye knew he would likely play his last high school basketball game.
He just didn’t expect it to his first one.
Maye and Myers Park lost their first round playoff game at home to Greensboro Page Tuesday. Page won 83-58 by playing a myriad of defenses against the larger Mustangs, but all of them were designed to do the same thing: dare Myers Park to consistently take outside shots.
And the Mustangs couldn’t make them.
Myers Park shot 31 percent for the game, and after each miss, Page’s defenders got closer and closer to the Myers Park goal. Maye, committed to play football at Alabama, plans to graduate next December and won’t play basketball his senior year.
“It’s tough,” Maye said. “It’s one of those nights you didn’t come out and play like you expect. It’s my last time touching the basketball, man. There’s some good memories. I was thinking about that the last couple minutes, sitting on the bench. I’ve been playing from a young age and winning some big games with my teammates. I’ve got some memories that will last forever.”
Maye and the Mustangs (18-10) were hoping to make another postseason run like they did in 2019 when Myers Park reached the regional semifinals. But it was clear from the beginning that Myers Park was having a tough shooting night and an equally tough time slowing down Page’s guards.
Page spread the floor and drove the ball consistently. And when Myers Park collapsed to help, Page made its outside jumpers.
Jason Sellars had 22 points to lead Page (16-12), more than double his 9.6 average. Jaden Ellis had 18, including a couple tough finishes around the basket and a contested step-back 3-pointer before the halftime buzzer that kind of encapsulated Tuesday’s game.
Page, which shot 56 percent from the field, seemed to make everything. Myers Park just didn’t seem to make much of anything.
“Trying to give you the G-rated version,” Myers Park coach Scott Taylor said. “I learned a long time ago that when you step in the white lines, you’re liable to get your butt kicked. They were really well prepared and they did a good job of exposing some things we haven’t been great at.”
THREE WHO MATTERED
Jaden Ellis, Page: controlled the game from both guard spots. When he played the point, he set his teammates up for easy baskets. When he was off the ball, he had a variety of dribble drive scoring moves and midrange pull-ups.
Drake Maye, Myers Park: finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two assists in what may be his last high school game.
Xavier McKelvy, Myers Park: team-high 21 points to go with seven rebounds.
WORTH MENTIONING
▪ Page came in having gone 3-3 in its past three games. It finished third in the Metro 4A conference.
▪ Myers Park ended its season with two straight losses. The Mustangs lost to Independence 65-60 in the Southwestern 4A tournament semifinals. Overall, Myers Park lost three of its last four.
▪ Myers Park will graduate six seniors and will likely lose Maye.
THEY SAID IT
“Each year has its own personality and story. What last year does is give you a gentle nudge and a reminder of what’s possible. You always enter the playoffs hopeful. I’ve always said in tournament basketball, the first one is the hardest because you’ve got to get your foot in the door and it’s like, now you’re in the tournament and you can exhale and go play. But I thought they were free and confident tonight and they came in here expecting to win and you could kind of see that from the beginning.” -- Myers Park coach Scott Taylor
Quick Links
Vote Observer girls basketball player of the week
Vote Observer athlete of the week
Vote Observer boys basketball player of the week
Tuesday’s boys, girls boxscores
Elevator
↑South Mecklenburg: Sabres have won nine of their last 12 after Tuesday’s 67-51 win over Lake Norman in the 4A playoffs. South, which began the season 1-5, is now 13-11. Joseph Ferrante led the Sabres with 15.
↓First round conference rematches: no playoff system is perfect but it can’t be fun to play a conference rival early in the playoffs. Sun Valley and Weddington, for example, played each other in the first round Tuesday. They are Southern Carolinas conference rivals.
↑Bandys girls: beat Pisgah to get their first playoff win in five years.
↑Lake Norman girls: got first playoff win in 10 years.
↑AJ Smith, Hickory Grove: finished the season as the school’s all-time leading scorer. Smith has 1,835 career points. He’ll return for his senior season in November.
Tuesday’s #BIG5 Boys Top Performers
Logan Blair, Harding: 23 points, 20 rebounds in an 80-76 win over Porter Ridge.
Kyle Frazier, Weddington: 20 points, six rebounds in a 48-40 win over Sun Valley. Weddington will play at Statesville in Thursday’s second round.
Justin Kuthan, East Lincoln: 22 points, 14 rebounds in a 55-38 win over East Burke in the 2A playoffs.
Beau Maye, Hough: 25 points, 10 rebounds, five assists in a 63-61 win over Rocky River. Nick Burns had 21 for Rocky River (11-13). Hough is 18-9.
Cal Reed, Lake Norman Charter: Down 13 points in the third quarter, Lake Norman Charter avoided a first-round upset, rallying to beat West Stanly 59-54. Reed had a team-high 17 points. He also had 10 assists, five steals and was 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 17 seconds.
Tuesday’s #BIG5 Girls Top Performers
Logan Dutka, Bandys: 30 points in a 57-40 win over Pisgah. Bandys (20-6) got 14 from Macy Rummage.
Jasmine Fearne, Hickory Ridge: 19 points, four assists, four rebounds in a 55-44 win over Ardrey Kell. Kennedy Calhoun added 13 points, four assists and two steals. Kaitlyn Walters made 4-of-4 free throws in the final 90 seconds. UNC-Wilmington recruit Evan Miller had 16 for Ardrey Kell.
Ashley Kennedy, Kirsten Lewis-Williams, Lake Norman: In a 63-48 win over West Forsyth, Kennedy had a team-high 16 points. Lewis-Williams had 12 points, 12 rebounds. Lake Norman got its first playoff win since 2010.
Braylyn Milton, Independence: 21 points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals in a 60-46 win over Olympic. She picked up an offer from Wofford after the game.
Jessica Timmons, North Mecklenburg: 28 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists in a 74-47 win over South Caldwell.
The Best Things I Heard About Tuesday
▪ Cherryville’s Austin Thompson made the game-winning shot with two seconds left in a 67-66 win over Mount Airy. He finished with 22 points. Cherryville was down six with 95 seconds left. Other heroes? Lavonte Hughes had 11 points. Lane Harrill had 20 points, 12 rebounds.
▪ So the reason why Cuthbertson’s girls are 27-2 and a serious threat for a 3A state championship is defense. The Cavaliers allow fewer than 35 points per game. Northwest Cabarrus, which averaging nearly 50 points per game, only got to 28 in a 6528 loss. Maddie Dillinger had 17, Reagan Iovino 14, Lauryn Hardiman 10 and Ruby Williams 10 for Cuthbertson.
▪ Butler’s Michaela Lane is one of the most underrated players in the area, yet she keeps putting up gems like Tuesday. She had 19 points, 14 rebounds, five steals and five blocks in a 56-42 win over Purnell Swett.
