CHEROKEE — Surrendering a 26-point lead in the championship of the Lancer Classic, the Parsons Vikings boys fell to New Heights in overtime, 76-73, on Saturday.
Late-game miscues, including a pair of turnovers on inbounds plays in the final 60 seconds, plus hot-shooting from New Heights in the second half, erased a massive lead the Vikings built. With six-tenths of a second remaining, New Heights forced overtime with a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from the left wing.
New Heights outscored Parsons, 12-9, in the extra four minutes.
“I hate it for our kids that played so hard,” Parsons head coach Anthony Houk said. “They’ve been practicing hard and they had themselves in a good spot. It’s my fault. We’ve practiced too many times to not have end-game situations covered enough. That’s my fault. I should’ve had more of that in. At the end of the day, credit the other team. They never rolled over and made shots.”
Parsons’ fortunes in the first half saw the Vikings appear nearly unbeatable as they connected on eight 3-pointers, including six from Dontae Sawyer.
“You always want to see your kids do well and they had it rolling,” Houk said. “The game is four quarters, though. You’ve got to put it together for four quarters. But that first half, that’s how good we can be.”
New Heights’ offense caught fire in the second half as it outscored Parsons 18-6 in the third quarter and 27-16 in the fourth.
“We had too many turnovers that gave them extra possessions,” Houk said. “We’ve got to work on that especially when we have a lead.”
Connor Largent led the Vikings with 23 points.
“He was coming off the bench and giving us great minutes all year. He had been playing so well, he earned a starting spot,” Houk said. “He slipped in there and really got after it. He keeps the game simple. He rebounds the ball well. He really helps us.”
With the loss, Parsons dropped to 7-4 on the year — the Vikings beat Commerce, 72-31, and Southeast, 57-45, in the first two rounds of the Lancer Classic.
“You can’t just put something like this behind you,” Houk said. “You’ve got to learn things. One, we’ve got to execute details better and that starts with me. Two, learn from Heights. If you’re down, never roll over. You can get hot. That’s all you can do — wake up, put your feet on the floor and try to win the day.”
Up next
Parsons leaps back into SEK League play on Tuesday with a trip to Pittsburg.
“They’ve been the league champ for the last handful of years,” Houk said. “We can’t beat ourselves. We’ve got to go into their place and take care of business.”
