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Warren outlasts New Lex for district championship

By Mike Morrison 8 min read

ATHENS, Ohio -- Julian Stadelman and Trent Taylor combined for 37 points to lead the Warren Warriors to a thrilling 54-46, overtime win over the New Lexington Panthers in an instant classic in the Division II, Southeast District championship game at the Convocation Center on the campus of Ohio University Saturday afternoon.

Neither team led by more than four points in the third and fourth quarters in a game that took twist after twist and turn after turn before the Warriors found a way to survive and advance to the Sweet 16 for the second time in three years.

"What a game and what an effort.... Our kids are tired and they're hurting but it is a good hurt," said Warrior head coach Blane Maddox. "I'm just so proud of them and what a gusty performance by both teams."

Warren has been a fast starter all season long and Saturday afternoon would be no exception as they quickly jumped out to an 8-0 lead thanks to six early points from Stadelman.

The Panthers responded with a two-pointer from sophomore Paul Stenson and a 3-pointer from freshman Eli Stephens before Taylor got loose on the baseline and finished with a thunderous two-handed dunk to give the Warriors a 10-5 lead.

New Lex managed to whittle the lead down to a point late in the quarter but junior Colin Anthony finished off the opening period with a bucket off of an assist from Stadelman to give the Warriors a 12-9 lead.

The Panthers took their first lead of the game in the second quarter thanks to a triple and a two-point floater by senior Jacob Braglin.

From that point of time until the overtime period the two teams would not be separated by more than four points as both teams played great defense while seldom turning the ball over on offense.

Stadelman came into the game with 987 points and needing just 13 to eclipse the 1,000 mark and with the Warriors trailing by a pair late in the quarter he tied the game with a short jumper for his 14th point of the half to eclipse the mark.

"Anybody that hasn't got the chance to watch him play is missing a great player," said Maddox of Stadelman, who wears 00 on his jersey. "He just does so much for us -- he just has unbelievable quickness and skill set."

Stadelman was the second Warrior to eclipse the century mark this season, joining Taylor, who got his point No. 1,000 in the postseason as well.

Warren opened up the second half in grand fashion on inside baskets by Taylor and junior Chase Lupardus before New Lexington began to heat up from the outside as they got back-to-back triples from Stenson and junior Bentley Hanson.

Hanson capped an 8-0 Panther run as he hit a pull-up jumper to give New Lex a 32-28 lead.

The Panthers did an outstanding job of keeping the ball out of Stadelman's hands in the third period as he took just two shots while being held scoreless in the quarter.

"He missed a few shots and went a little flat there in the third quarter," said Maddox of Stadelman. "Credit to them on defense but he didn't quit and we knew he would make some plays before the game was over."

Panther junior Isaiah Stephens hit a pair of clutch shots to close out the third quarter as New Lexington took a 36-32 lead into the final eight minutes of the game.

The Warriors got a huge triple from junior Jacob Sealey to open the fourth quarter but New Lexington answered with an Eli Stephens bucket off of an assist from Isaiah Stephens.

Neither team would be able to change the score for the next several minutes as the Panthers clung to a one-point lead as the clock ticked down under the three-minute mark.

Stadelman had been held scoreless the entire second half but as he has been able to do all season long he came to life at just the right time.

The 6-foot junior drove and tossed in a floater and then after Taylor came up with a huge steal on the other end the former Warrior quarterback fired a perfect long pass to Stadelman who caught it in stride and put it in for two-more to put the Warriors back in front.

After the Warrior defense came up with a huge stop on the other end Stadelman struck again as he and Taylor played a perfect two-man game with Taylor assisting Stadelman's third straight bucket to give the Warriors a three-point lead in the closing minute of the regulation.

The Panthers have some clutch performers on their squad as well and Hanson showed he was one of them when he tied the game with a long three-pointer with less than 30 seconds to play in the game.

New Lexington had some fouls to give and they used up everyone of them leaving the Warriors the ball with less than seven seconds to play with a chance for a game-winner.

The Warriors worked the ball around before getting into the hands of junior Connor Barry whose 3-pointer hit off of the rim as the buzzer sounded sending the game to overtime.

Warren connected on just two 3-pointers in the game and Sealey would be responsible for both of them including a huge 3-ball to open the overtime period.

Minutes later the Panthers struck back as it would be Isaiah Stephens ringing the bell from long distance to put them back in front by a point.

The Warriors got a huge turnover on a steal from Barry and went back to work on offense.

The tandem of Stadelman and Taylor struck again this time with Taylor being the recipient of a Stadelman assist to put the Warriors back in front.

New Lexington turned the ball over just seven times the entire game but Stadelman came up with a steal and was quickly fouled by the Panthers.

Stadelman made both freebies to extend the lead to three and after Eli Stephens missed a three-pointer that would have tied the game Taylor came up with a huge rebound for the Warriors.

Warren won the battle of the boards by a healthy 33-17 margin.

"We knew that we had an advantage inside and we rebounded well," said Taylor. "They got a few offensive rebounds early on but when it came down to it we did what we needed to do."

Taylor got the ball to Sealey who drew a foul and made one-of-two at the stripe to extend the lead to four.

New Lex came up empty once again on their next possession and Barry pretty much put things away with two more freebies to extend the lead to six before Taylor put an exclamation point on a huge Warriors win by catching a long pass from Stadelman and finishing the game with a two-handed dunk to officially punch the Warrior ticket to the regionals.

"Both teams would not give up.... One minute it looked like we were done and the next it looked like they were done." said Maddox. "It took everything we had but we were finally able to put them away."

Taylor was a part of the last Warrior team to win the district title and was thrilled to capture another one as a senior.

"I remember that feeling and what it was like and it's awesome," said Taylor. "It was just grit... we just had to fight it out and it was a grind and just came down to who toughed it out more and fortunately we got it done."

Stadelman finished with 22 points, five assists and seven rebounds and on a night when he achieved a personal milestone he was more proud of the win.

"It's great to get a thousand but at the end of the day it's just a number," said Stadelman, who will have a full senior season next year to add to his total. "People are going to remember how we won this game and got a banner more than a thousand points."

Taylor added 15 points and nine rebounds while also playing great defense as he came up with a pair of huge turnovers and several crucial boards down the stretch.

Hanson led the way for the Panthers with 17 points while Isaiah and Eli Stephens added nine and seven points respectively.

New Lexington's season comes to a close with a 21-5 record while the Warriors (22-3) will open regional play Thursday evening against Tri-Valley back at the Convo.

"We have a 20-game sectional so you are through absolute wars by the time you are through this sectional," said Maddox. "Congratulations to Warrior nation and what a great crowd we had here again today."

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