Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
ATHENS — Fairfield made a statement in its first trip to the Convocation Center this season.
Hungry to get back into a district title game, the Lions met up with SHAC foe Manchester in a Division IV district semifinal on Saturday night.
After an explosive third quarter from Logan McIntosh and a double-double from Larkin Friend, they cruised their way past the Greyhounds with a 62-33 victory.
“Coming to the Convo is always fun,” Friend said after the game. “We made it last year and we couldn’t get it done. We came out focused and did a pretty good job tonight.”
CREDIT: Raymond Gleadle/SOSA
Manchester started 0-for-12 from the field, and Fairfield (21-3) took advantage.
Cade Miller and Logan McIntosh each knocked down a pair of 3-pointers while Larkin Friend grabbed seven boards in the opening frame to put the Lions out to an 18-3 advantage.
While the first quarter looked like the game would be all Fairfield, Manchester (15-9) woke up in the second.
Luke Applegate came off the bench for the Greyhounds and instantly made a statement. After knocking down a pair of his own triples, and another 3 from Connor Darnell in between, highlighted an 11-4 run for Manchester to cut the lead to 22-18 at the 2:21 mark in the half.
The two then exchanged baskets before the buzzer as Fairfield carried a 25-16 lead into the break.
“In the second quarter, we just weren’t communicating well defensively,” Fairfield head coach Quentin Williams said. “We weren’t getting stops, we weren’t rebounding, and we gave them confidence. The farther we go in the tournament, we can’t afford to do that.”
Fairfield lost some of its momentum in the second quarter, but all it would take was one play to steal it back.
McIntosh provided that spark, and then some.
After Darnell opened the second half with a basket inside, McIntosh took over, scoring on four of the team’s next five possessions — including three straight — to spark a 10-0 run.
With 2:48 left in the third, McIntosh had tallied 10 points in the quarter and Fairfield’s lead had grown to 35-18. It had grown to 44-21 by the end of the quarter.
It was enough to put the game out of reach.
“We recollected and got it back together in the second half,” Williams said. “Logan was a big spark plug to get us going offensively. We never looked back and our defense locked back in.”
The Lions continued to score and stayed firmly grounded on the gas pedal until the final buzzer, capping a 62-33 victory to send themselves back to Athens.
McIntosh led the Lions in scoring with 22 points. Trey House and Larkin Friend, the latter of whom grabbed a team-high 19 rebounds, each scored 12 points. Cade Miller also contributed eight points on the evening.
For Manchester, Applegate led the way with 15 points. Darnell also chipped in with 10 points of his own.
Fairfield will return to Athens on Friday for a Division IV district final. That contest is slated for 8:15 p.m. against Federal Hocking — a winner over Waterford.
The upcoming contest means a little more to Fairfield’s senior class, who have made it to a district final in each of the last three years, but have come up short every time.
The Lions look to put that streak to an end on Friday.
“We’ve put in the work. I’ve been with these kids since they were in the seventh grade,” Williams said. “We’ve worked so hard and done things the right way. There’s not a group of seniors out there that deserve it more.”
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