Mustang boys find new life in postseason opener by pulling off OT win, 51-50

Broncos erase several late-game deficits to keep their season going

By Michael Kinney 

EDMOND - The way Mustang's boys ended the regular season, there was really no reason to believe they could make any noise in the postseason.

After dropping seven of their last eight games, they looked like they were headed to be somebody’s first-round fodder.

However, the one thing the Broncos had learned during their horrific losing streak was to never give in. Even in their worst outings, they had continued to battle.

That trait came in handy Friday when they took on Edmond Memorial in the opening round of the 6A regional tournament. Facing several late-game deficits, the Broncos came back to beat the Bulldogs, 51-50, in overtime at Edmond North.

“It feels amazing,” Mustang senior Jacobe Johnson said. “There are really no words that can explain it. I feel like we really deserve that win.

"We've been working hard the whole season; even when we went through that little stretch when we lost seven games, we were still in the lab working. I really feel like we deserve that.”

Facing a team that had beaten them by 18 just three weeks earlier, Mustang had several times where it could have folded. But the battle-tested unit always found a way to make the right play in the biggest moments.

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Trailing 50-47 with just 27 seconds left on the clock in overtime, Johnson drove into the lane and was fouled. He knocked down both free throws to cut the deficit down to one.

Memorial threw the ball in and tried to get it over the half-court line. But freshman Jaden Johnson deflected the pass and Roman Miller pounced on the loose ball.

After a couple of timeouts, the Broncos got the ball to Miller, who was fouled while driving into the paint. The sophomore calmly stepped to the line and drilled both free throws to put MHS up by one.

Edmond had just 4.1 seconds left on the clock. However, after the Bulldogs got the ball across half-court, there were left with just 0.9 seconds remaining.

They tried to throw a desperation alley-oop, but the Broncos defended it well as time ran out. An elated Mustang squad celebrated at half-court, knowing they had kept their season alive.

“Our guys kept fighting, man,” Mustang coach Scott Hodges said. “That's kind of what we've been talking to them about the last couple weeks, just being competitive, making winning plays, the game's never over.

"We've lost a lot of those this semester like that. I think maybe that helped us stick with it. We made some big plays and we found a way to win.” 

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Carter Hjelmstad paced the Bulldogs with 15 points, with Ciaran Pedulla adding 14. However, the duo was held to five points in overtime.

Jacobe Johnson scored 12 of his game-high 21 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. Miller and Chance Rodgers each scored 14 points.

The two teams kept it close for much of the first half. While the Bulldogs had the early momentum, it was the Broncos who finished strong, as a 3-pointer from Rodgers at the buzzer to close out the second quarter gave Mustang a 26-25 halftime advantage.

The Bulldogs picked up their defense in the third quarter.

They shut down everything in the paint for the Broncos. They not only wouldn’t allow Johnson and Miller to drive, but they were also able to keep Cole Clipson from even catching the ball in the post.

Yet, it was the Broncos' unforced turnovers that hurt them the most. Edmond made them pay for the miscues as the Bulldogs got out on the break and scored.

However, once again Rodgers hit back-to-back 3-pointers to keep Mustang within striking distance as Memorial led, 37-35, going into the fourth quarter.

The Bulldogs looked like they had the game wrapped with seven seconds left in regulation when Hjelmstad drained a jumper to put EMHS up by two. However, they left just enough time for Johnson to sprint the court to the basket and score at the buzzer, sending the contest into overtime

“That's just what we do,” Johnson said. “We're an athletic team, we fly around, especially when we want to. If we do that, we're a tough team to beat."

Mustang will now face defending 6A champion Edmond North for the regional championship Saturday night after the Huskies rolled over Midwest City, 61-42.

Even though Mustang’s win against the Bulldogs secured them a spot in the area tournament, they are looking forward to taking on the Huskies and riding their current two-game win streak.

“We just got to win two before we lose two to go to the state tournament,” Hodges said. “We've got a tough game (Saturday) night against a good Edmond North team and it'll be a great atmosphere like it was (Friday).

"But I'm excited. It's the fun games that big-time players and big-time coaches want to play in.”