Lima Senior’s Isaiah Wilson defends Toledo Whitmer’s Deric Jaynes during Tuesday night’s game at Lima Senior. See more high school basketball photos at LimaScores.com.
Lima Senior reversed an 18-point loss earlier this season when it beat Toledo Whitmer 52-46 on Tuesday night at Senior High.
The Spartans (12-5, 6-5 TRAC) led or were tied all but around a minute of the game against Whitmer (11-7, 9-2 TRAC).
Lima Senior got a huge game from Anthony Mosley (18 points, 11 rebounds), 12 points from Je’Kel Cotton and some timely 3-point shooting from Jagger Hutchins and Cotton to turn back a second-half comeback by Whitmer.
Devin Morgan led Whitmer with 14 points. Tamarrion Davis had 12 points and Antione West scored 10 points.
Lima Senior led 26-19 at halftime and Whitmer looked almost nothing like a team capable of scoring 83 points, as it did in an 83-65 win over the Spartans on Dec. 9 in Toledo.
Lima Senior never was behind in the first half. It led by nine points, 15-6, after one quarter and was up by as many as 11 points after Jagger Hutchins connected on a 3-pointer with 2:45 left in the first half.
Lima Senior had a 14-9 edge in rebounds in the first two quarters and converted three offensive rebounds into baskets – two by Mosley and one by Cotton.
The Spartans shot 44 percent on field goals in the first half (11 of 25) while Whitmer was 8 of 21, including 2 of 9 in the first quarter.
The game was the 27th match-up between the two schools in boys basketball. Lima Senior had a 15-11 edge going into the game.
Whitmer tied the game at 34-34 in the final seconds of the third quarter and took its first lead of the game at 37-36 with 6:58 left to play. It pushed that advantage to three points at 39-36.
But Cotton tied the game with a 3-pointer with 6:15 left on the clock. Hutchins followed with another 3-pointer to put Lima Senior ahead 42-39 with 5:31 to play. Then he hit another 3-pointer with 4:46 to play to give the Spartans a 45-39 lead.
Whitmer never got closer than three points after that trio of triples by the Spartans. Lima Senior hit 7 of 12 field goal attempts in the fourth quarter.
Reach Jim Naveau at 567-242-0414.
