Lions’ 10 point lead with 1:02 left vanishes against Sparta

Coming off a Sparta Trojans Invitational where the Mansfield Lions’ basketball team beat three teams with double-digit wins to claim the championship, a six-day break set them up with a home match-up against a Sparta team they didn’t end up playing in the tournament.
With 1:07 left in the game, the Lions were up 10 points and were headed to a big Summit Conference win.
Unfortunately, the Trojans had other plans.
They first completed a 3-point play and hit a 3-pointer 25 seconds later to cut the lead to 54-50.
After a pair of missed Mansfield free throw shots, Sparta hit another 3-pointer with 25.6 seconds left to close the gap to one point.
Sparta would then force a turnover and eventually convert a 3-point play to complete a late 12-0 run, taking a 56-54 lead with nine seconds left in the contest.
After a timeout and a coaches timeout saved a possible turnover, the Lions inbounded the ball with .4 seconds left and were unable to convert in the two-point loss.
Early on in the contest, the Lions were sparked by Kellen Campbell’s four points and a 3-pointer from Charlie Grubbs’ opening 3-pointer. Mansfield led 13-10 until things got away from them in the second quarter.
Malachi Ussery was whistled for two quick fouls. A technical foul on the Lions would lead to a 7-0 run and a four-point Trojans’ lead.
Jace Headrick hit a big 3-pointer during a 7-0 run as Mansfield rallied then held just a 20-19 halftime edge.
Mansfield did shoot 50% from the field in the first half while holding the Trojans’ offense to making just 8-of-24 shots.
Riley Stidham, Haven Proetz and Headrick all scored four points in a 16-point third quarter to maintain the slim lead.
Headrick opened the fourth quarter with a 3-point play for a four-point lead.
Blake Henry nearly converted a 3-point play to keep the same edge. He assisted Campbell on a near three-point play midway through the quarter. Grubbs would sink a pair of free throws with 1:07 left in the game before the Trojans ended the game with their miraculous run.
In the loss, Headrick paced Mansfield with 14 points, three rebounds, three assists and one steal; Proetz scored 12 points, three assists and two rebounds; Henry had six points, six rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block; Campbell tallied 10 points, six rebounds and one assist; and Stidham had five points and one block.