'This is a statement': Larimer, Maysville tame Tri-Valley

NEWTON TOWNSHIP — When Connor Larimer is playing like a big man indicative of his 6-4 frame, Maysville is a different kind of team.

That was evident on Friday night in their biggest game of the season.

Larimer fell 10 points shy of his 15-point season average in a showdown with visiting Tri-Valley, but he showed up large in other key areas in a 57-46 win against the Muskingum Valley League's tallest team.

Particularly, it was his interior defense on 6-5 Erik Neal and strength on the glass that proved critical factors in keeping the Panthers' unbeaten and now alone atop the Big School Division.

Neal was held to 10 points, including just four on two field goals in the second half. Larimer also drew Neal's fourth foul after Larimer blocked a shot in the paint in the fourth quarter, when the Scotties were trying to get within two possessions of the lead with five minutes to play.

Coupled with another strong effort from veteran guard Hayden Jarrett, who led three Panthers (6-0, 5-0) in double figures with a game-high 20 points, it led to another bareknuckle brawl in the Big School Division.

"(Larimer) is coming in averaging 14-15 points per game. He has been our third or fourth scorer for us," coach Dave Brown said. "But he has played great defense, he has rebounded, I thought he kept his composure. Erik Neal is a really good player and I thought he did a good job on him. He scored on him a few times, but he battled."

Dirty work aside, his biggest play might have been a basket.

With his team clinging to a 38-34 lead late in the third quarter, he took a pass along the baseline, took a pair of dribbles and powered home a layup between a pair of defenders, drawing a foul in the process.

He missed the free throw, but it extended the Panther lead to six points with 1:33 left. More importantly, it showed how the added strength gained in the offseason has benefited him against some of the area's best post players.

That likely wouldn't have happened a year ago.

"We knew this was going to be a huge game coming in," Larimer said. "We haven't won an MVL title since 1995 and this was a huge game to make sure we win the MVL title. And this is a statement to the district."

Larimer's play didn't go unnoticed. His teammates are in concert when it comes to his overall importance to the operation.

"He played great defense on Erik, and he did that last year when we beat them here, too," Alex Bobb said. "That was his role today and he executed that well. It's so important for us. It's the only size we have. Coen (Fink) is athletic, but he's our stocky guy. It's important for him to guard the big guy and shut him down. I think he does a great job with that."

Tri-Valley (5-2, 4-1) led 17-12 in the second quarter, but the first of two key lengthy stretches of inefficient offense allowed Maysville to take control.

The Scotties still led 18-15 when Wesley Armstead and sniper Cole Roberts hit 3s on consecutive possessions. It started a 15-2 run that saw the Scotties notch only one field goal — Neal's 15-footer — and Maysville hit three of its four 3-point attempts.

But 6-4 lefty Max Lyall, who paced Tri-Valley with 18 points, hit a big 3 off a kick-out pass from Neal to cut the Panther lead to 30-23 at the half, salvaging some momentum into the break.

It continued to start the third, as Neal scored both of his field goals down low in an 8-3 run that cut the deficit to 33-31 with 4:10 left in the quarter.

But Neal's layup on the run with 4:39 left in the quarter, which drew a foul, was Tri-Valley's last field goal until Noah Nichols barely beat the horn with a basket off a steal to end the quarter. It came after Jarrett converted a three-point play that pushed the Panther lead to 43-32.

Tri-Valley got it back to two possessions at 43-37 after Lyall hit a free throw and scored down low off another Neal assist, and they had a chance to get closer after Maysville came up empty on its end.

Emblematic of its inconsistent play on offense, however, the Scotties were called for charging the next time down. They missed two more layups on their next possession, then came up empty twice one possession later.

The dam finally burst when Jarrett turned a steal into a transition basket and Larimer hit a free throw, making it 48-37 with 4:01 to go.

Tri-Valley never got closer than nine from that point, as Jarrett, Bobb and Armstead combined to hit 6 of 8 free throws in the final two minutes.

"The second half they were the more physical team," Tri-Valley coach Todd McLoughlin said. "They were way more aggressive than us. And when you knock down shots like they were — those 3s came at critical moments in the second half, which really put us in a bad situation. You have to give them credit for that."

Tri-Valley managed just two field goals from the 4:39 mark of the third until 3:01 in the fourth — a span of almost 10 minutes.

"And you can't have spells like that," McLoughlin said. "That's when they made their run. We missed multiple layups around the rim, and just some of our turnovers and decision making is still a process.

"When you graduate seven seniors and have three guys coming back who have experience — there were a lot of guards in there," McLoughlin said. "When you have guards it makes a difference. Our decision making is something we have to focus on each and every day."

Bobb finished with 16 points and the quick and smooth-shooting Armstead 13 with four of the team's nine 3-pointers.

One more Arsmtead 3, and Brown was committed to growing a mullet. He's safe — for now.

"That would have been great for Christmas pictures," Katie Brown, his wife, quipped sarcastically.

Jayden Walker added seven points and Terrell Darden and Nichols four each for Tri-Valley, which was 17-of-40 from the field with 15 turnovers.

sblackbu@gannett.com

Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR

This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: 'This is a statement': Larimer, Maysville tame Tri-Valley