Fool me once, shame on me once. Fool me twice, well, shame on me twice. In their most inspiring performance of the year, Mallard Creek took down North Meck for the second time this season in the second round of the IMECK tournament; this time by double digits. With the victory, the Mavericks will take on West Charlotte on Friday night for the IMECK Championship
I said before this game that Mallard Creek would have to knock down some perimeter jumpers in order to win the game. They did better than ‘some’; shooting what had to be at least 70% from behind the 3 point line. Mallard Creek was led by 6’4 Junior forward Dominique Henderson (24 points) who had the best game of his career shooting lights out from beyond the arc. Once again, a complete team effort was key to this Maverick victory.
This game felt eerily similar to the previous meeting these two teams had back in January. The game went back and forth for the 1st quarter but Mallard Creek was in the driver’s seat for the remainder of the game. They got down the floor on the break, played excellent defense and passed the ball well. What propelled them over the top was the unreal shooting behind the 3 point line. This is an element of their game that was completely unexpected. This is a team that thrives on attacking the basket and out-hustling their opponents. The more they shot, the more confident they seemed to become. Defensively, the Mavericks had about 4 different guys on Wiggins (27 points), with each guy making him uncomfortable all night long. Mallard Creek and West Charlotte are the only two teams in this area who have the personnel to make Wiggins have to fight and earn every point he gets. And if Wiggins is uncomfortable, North Meck is uncomfortable.
Discuss in forum: Mallard Creek Takes Down North Meck Again, 71-56
Mallard Creek is going to be a real dark-horse in the 4A playoffs this year. This is a team that plays with an unreal amount of energy and can just wear opponents down. As for the IMECK Championship, I have to go with West Charlotte. The Lions are simply loaded. But with the way the effort the Mavericks gave last night, combined with the way they shot the ball, you have to like their chances to keep this one close and possible pull an upset off in the end.