MHS boys to host King William Friday
by Tom Hardin
Middlesex lost a key Tidewater District game to West Point, 47-44, last Friday at West Point.
“Everything that could have gone wrong in the first half did,” said MHS coach Brody Jackson. “We missed a lot of layups on offense, weren’t aggressive like we wanted to be on defense, and got a few guys in foul trouble.”
The Chargers trailed by 14 points at the half but made a spirited second half rally and took the lead with two minutes to play. However, the Pointers got a big score and made some defensive stops to pull out the win.
“In the second half our defense only allowed 7 field goals and 18 points overall,” said Jackson. “It was a rough environment to play in and as a coach it was my fault that we weren’t ready.”
Ryheem Lockley led MHS with 28 points and 12 rebounds and LJ King added 8 points.
Lockley led MHS with 24 points; King scored 20 points, including three 3-pointers in the 4th quarter; and Juwan Reed added 7 points.
At one point the Chargers took the lead in the second half but could not maintain the momentum. “We just got in a funk where we wanted to settle for jump shots,” said Coach Jackson. “Ryheem did a great job of attacking the basket. When Ryheem can attack it sets up everyone else and LJ took advantage and had a nice game with 20 points.
“We let our offense dictate how hard we play on defense and we can’t have that. We need our defense to set up our offense,” said Jackson.
Lockley led MHS with 18 points and 10 rebounds; guard Sherman Osborne had 12 points and four 3-pointers; and Reed chipped in 7 points and 7 rebounds.
“We played well in spurts, but they have so many athletes that it wears on you,” said Jackson. “When Sherman [Osborne] gets going and can put the ball in the basket we become a much better team.
“After losing three games last week we can either pack it in or realize our mistakes and correct them,” said Jackson. “The season is far from over.”
Middlesex (3-1, 6-8) ) will host King William this Friday, January 27; will visit King and Queen on Tuesday, January 31; will host Mathews on Friday, February 3; and will host West Point on Tuesday, February 7. All four are Tidewater District games.
JV games begin at 6 p.m. and varsity games follow at 7:30 p.m.
