Panthers rally past Trojans

MT. PLEASANT — Some say it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. That was certainly true for the Mt. Pleasant boys basketball team on Friday night.

Mt. Pleasant had to rally back from a 10-point deficit to stave off a home loss to rival Fairfield. In the end, the Panthers prevailed 57-48.

“We came out a little stale,” said Mt. Pleasant head coach Eric Rawson. “We had to fight back, and they certainly did.”

Fairfield was on fire out of the locker rooms. The Trojans had six early points from big man Max Weaton, and Fairfield led 19-9 after one quarter.

“I thought our guys came out with a lot of energy,” said Fairfield head coach Mick Flattery. “I was really proud of our kids.”

While Mt. Pleasant didn’t steal the lead from Fairfield in the third, the Panthers did start to chip away.

“We came out kind of stagnant,” said Mt. Pleasant senior Aaiden Ashton. “We just had to get invested, and come out with more intensity.”

Fairfield clung on to a 30-27 lead at halftime. In the third quarter, Mt. Pleasant held the Trojans to just two points, and by the third horn, momentum had completely flipped in what was a 40-32 Mt. Pleasant advantage.

“That third quarter is killing this team right now,” said Flattery.

Fairfield never got the lead back, as Mt. Pleasant won a hectic fourth quarter 17-16 to secure its sixth home win of the season.

“We just keep protecting our house,” Ashton said. “We're undefeated at home, and it feels good.”

Ashton finished the night with 17 points. Payton Hagans scored 16. Owen Vansickel and Nate Stroud had eight apiece. Noah Lange scored five. Chris Ewoldt finished with two, and Carter Amos chipped in one.

JJ Lane finished the night with 18 points and five assists for Fairfield. Weaton had 14 pounds and 10 rebounds. Ryan Higgins scored six points. Tate Allen had five. Riley Perkins scored three, and Luke Konczal ended with two.

Mt. Pleasant moved to 9-3 overall and stayed tied in first place with a 5-1 Southeast Conference record. Fairfield is now 4-6 overall and 2-4 in league play.