GLUCKSTADT — For the second time in two weeks the top-ranked team goes down.
Behind the play of Sam Funches along with a strong second half, Germantown knocked off top-ranked Starkville 48-46 in a key Region 2-7A matchup on Friday night.
With the win, Germantown (19-7, 7-3 Region 2-7A) clinched the No. 2 seed in the Region 2-7A district tournament next week at Oxford and locked up a playoff spot. Starkville (22-3, 7-2) travels to Oxford on Saturday and can clinch the No. 1 seed and a playoff spot with a win.
“For the first half it was nothing they did we just were playing bad, took too many quick shots and in the second half we defended really well,” said Germantown coach Christopher Love. “We executed the game plan in the second half. The first half I was embarrassed by how we were playing.”
Starkville couldn’t have asked for a better start as the Yellow Jackets jumped out to a 12-0 lead to begin the game and held an 18-6 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Starkville outscored the Mavericks 12-8 In the second quarter to take a 30-14 halftime lead.
In the second half things flipped. Germantown opened the third quarter on a 13-3 run to cut the Starkville lead down to 33-27 and from that point each team traded baskets that saw the Yellowjackets hold a 37-31 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The Mavericks opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to take a 38-37 lead, but Starkville’s T.J. Warren made a three-point play with 4:41 left to give the Yellow Jackets a 40-38 lead.
After Jerwan McCarter made one-of-two free throws to give Starkville a 41-40 lead, Germantown went on a 7-0 run to take a 47-41 lead.
Jaden Tate hit a jumper and Travelyn Guy hit a three-pointer for the Yellow Jackets with 28 seconds left to cut the Germantown lead to 47-46.
Germantown’s Devin Moore made one free throw with 11 seconds left to give the Mavericks the 48-46 lead and the last-second shot by McCarter bounced off the rim to end the game.
“Every close ball game is going to come down to a defensive stop and that’s something we preach on every single day,” Love said. “Get a stop and a rebound. In the second half we settled down and guarded well and Sam made some big shots. He’s one of the best players in the country so it’s good to have him back.”
Funches, a Gonzaga commit, finished with a game-high 21 points to lead Germantown, while Moore added 14 points, all in the second half, for the Mavericks.
“We had to keep fighting and had to be disciplined. We were down by 16 points and just had to face some adversity and had to keep battling,” Funches said. “Since we locked up the two seed, we had to play physical tonight because Starkville is a physical team.”
Jaden Tate had 12 points to lead Starkville.
“It wasn’t a lack of effort for us tonight we competed, but foul trouble plagued us some tonight. But Germantown is a team we will probably see next week or the week after as long as we win in the playoffs,” said Starkville coach Anthony Carlyle. “Hopefully we can go on the road tomorrow and beat Oxford and lock up the one seed. Everything resets to 0-0 next week.”
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