Cardinals claim 20th win with second half blow-out

By DONN ADAMSON\Daily Journal Sports Editor

ST. LOUIS - The Mineral Area Cardinals had beaten the Forest Park Highlanders quite handily in their first meeting at MAC, but that was early in the season. The Cardinals, ranked 19th nationally, had their hands full for most of the game on Wednesday, but finally they wore down the Highlanders and were able to improve their record to 20-4 with a 94-64 win.

Their first meeting ended in a score of 84-47, but it was in the first week of the season (November 5) and was a part of a 2-14 start for the Highlanders. Since then Forest Park was 4-5 going into Wednesday's game.

Tony Webb made the first basket MAC jumped out to a 6-0 lead before Forest Park scored their first point, and it looked like another rout was in the horizon. Once Pete Burla hit the Highlanders first basket, four minutes into the game, the two teams went at it like two boxers, trading punch for punch.

The Cardinals had trouble scoring and the Highlanders had trouble holding onto the ball. Mineral Area's defense created turnover after turnover by Forest Park.

MAC had plenty of opportunities to score, but even open shots and lay-ups could not find their way into the hoop. The Cardinals were 15-37 from the floor in the first half compared to Forest Park's 12-27.

Ricky Claitt came off the bench for Mineral Area and quickly scored seven points helping MAC to gain a 10-point edge at the half. Ten players scored for Mineral Area in the first half.

Burla scored Forest Park's first six points from the floor and went on to have an 11-point half. Along with Deonte Cox's eight points , who was 4-4 from the line, it kept Forest Park within striking distance of Mineral Area.

Forest Park never led in the game. The closest they came was to within two points with 3:15 let in the half. Webb hit MAC's only three pointer of the half and it started a run of the last seven points of the half to make it a 43-33 game.

“We didn't play too well at the start,” said Mineral Area coach Corey Tate, but our guys stuck together, toughed it out, and played well as a team down to the end.”

What was a basketball game in the first half began to take on a NASCAR-look at the start of the second half. Both teams raced up and down the floor with both teams scoring due to the defenses not able to get back in time. Forest Park coach Preston Thomas called time after a couple of Mineral Area baskets were not answered by his squad.

Willie Hassell took control of things after the time-out. Hassell scored on a fast break, and then stole the ball out of the hands of a Highlander and took it all the way to the hoop for a second score. It marked the beginning of the end for Forest Park.

The Cardinals went on a nine-point run and jumped out to a 20-point lead. Mineral Area's defense made stop after stop, by either just swiping the ball out of the Highlanders' hands or using a trap to get a travel or an errant throw by Forest Park's ballhandlers.

Terrell Rice did some damage for the Highlanders with two threes in the middle of the half, but it did not slow down the Cardinals' racecar.

Finally, the Highlanders ran out of gas, and what was a race became a one-car show. Curtis Muse took a pass at the top of the key and went in for the jam past Forest Park's defender who only watched the play instead of trying to stop it.

Mineral Area made three straight steals and turned each into points to go up by the final margin of 30 points. Forest Park committed 30 turnovers in the game to MAC's 13. Eight of Forest Park's turnovers were steals by the Cardinals in the second half.

Chad Henderson lit things up from outside with two threes and scoring all of his 11 points for Mineral Area in the second half. Mineral Area also controlled the boards with a 38-28 difference in rebounding.

The Cardinals had five players lead their scoring. Webb, Henderson, Hassell, Eric Stuckey, and Claitt scored 11 points each, and De Alan Hicks scored 10. Burla led the Highlanders with 20 points, and Cox had 14.

The Cardinals have won nine games in a row and could become winners of the Region 16 regular season with a win at Moberly on Saturday.

Mineral Area 43 51 - 94

Forest Park 33 31 - 64

Mineral Area - Webb 11, Henderson 11, Hassell 11, Stuckey 11, Claitt 11, Hicks 10, Butterfield 7, Wilkerson 7, Muse 6, Britton 6, Jones 2, Mata 1.

Forest Park - Burla 20, Cox 14, Rice 11, Lyles 6, Mason 6, Boykins 3, Rhone 3, Williams 1.

3-Pointers: Henderson 2, Rice 2, Webb, Wilkerson, Burla, Rhone.