Fairmont made the plays first — as it has all season — and moved one step closer to another Greater Western Ohio Conference title.
A 54-46 win against Springboro was established when Fairmont began converting fast break opportunities after forcing turnovers after halftime.
It’s the formula Fairmont has put to work all season.
“We got a couple ball touches and just put a little bit more pressure without overplaying. I think that led to a couple transition points and once we got going a little bit, I felt like we were putting ourselves in a pretty good position,” Fairmont head coach Jeremey Finn said.
Fairmont’s defensive stops sparked a 16-5 run throughout most of the third quarter. Springboro survived an early scoring drought to keep up with Fairmont, even holding a 22-21 lead early in the third, before the Firebirds went into shut down mode.
“We made those few adjustments at the half and then we started looking to attack a little bit more,” Finn said. “A lot of our offense comes from our defense and we started getting defensive rebounds and some transition points.”
Credit: Steven Wright
Credit: Steven Wright
Springboro made a final push, cutting a double-digit deficit down to four with just a few minutes remaining. Senior Kaylah Thornton and sophomore Janiyah Hargrave, the two leading scorers in the GWOC, then took the game over for the Firebirds with four combined steals turning into layups between the two Fairmont stars. Their plays recreated a cushion on the scoreboard that allowed Fairmont to cruise in the last minute.
Hargrave had 17 points to lead Fairmont, and Thornton added 13.
Sprinboro senior McKenzie Jones scored 20 in the loss.
Fairmont held off Springboro 52-46 in the first meeting of the season on Dec. 10. It was the last time Fairmont has been challenged down the stretch, having won all 10 of its games since then by at least 15 points.
Credit: Steven Wright
Credit: Steven Wright
All three of Springboro’s initial losses came by six points or fewer. The eight point defeat Wednesday was its largest of the season, but the Panthers are still playing Fairmont closer than nearly any other opponent.
“This is just a great rivalry. I have a group where I love this team,” Springboro head coach Michael Holweger said. “We’re feisty and we fight and we battle. I think we’re fun to watch and I enjoy watching us play because of the fight that we show night in and night out.
“We had a great week with wins over Hoban and Springfield coming in here and then competing really well and having chances. It’s just whenever we had a lapse, they took advantage and that’s what great teams do.”
Fairmont remained undefeated at 16-0 overall and 10-0 in the GWOC. The Firebirds are now three games clear of Springboro (12-4, 7-3) in the standings with four games remaining, closing in on securing a second consecutive GWOC title. They are also pulling away for the top seed in the RPI ratings for the district tournament and entered Wednesday with the top overall rating in the state in Division I.
“It’s been one of our goals to try and win the GWOC because that allows you in the tournament to be a top seed and put yourself in position to have a couple more opportunities to figure out where you want to go,” Finn said.
“This is a more physical group than what we were in the past because a lot of those kids it’s their fourth year playing. I’m more comfortable in close games than I was last year because I could look at them, tell them what we need to do and they can do that.”
Finn may be more comfortable playing in close games, but he hasn’t seen his team enter into many of them.
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