That “thud” you may have heard Tuesday night was the Leo Lions falling back to earth at Mt. Carmel.
Seeking to build on the momentum of an upset victory over Loyola Academy four nights earlier, as well as six wins in their previous seven games and an 11-3 record since January 1, the Lions instead were dismantled 83-41 by the Caravan. A running clock came into play in the fourth quarter.
A second straight win against three high-caliber Catholic League Blue Division rivals — Loyola, Mt. Carmel and St. Ignatius — proved easier said than done. The Lions fell to 17-10 overall and 2-5 in the CCL Blue, while Carmel improved to 23-5, 4-3. Leo will close out the Catholic League portion of the schedule against St. Ignatius (23-5, 4-3) at home on Friday.
The game started off slowly, so Leo went to a fullcourt press to force tempo. The Caravan, though, had no trouble with the press, instead forcing several Lion turnovers with its own pressure and knocking down enough shots to grab a 27-9 lead after the first period.
A 9-4 run to open the second quarter cut the deficit to 13 points and gave the Lions some life, but Carmel immediately regrouped and pulled away. Leo would get no closer than 13 points back the rest of the game.
The Caravan is said to have three Division I prospects on their roster, and their talents were on full display. In addition to handling the Leo press, point guard Noah Mister finished with a game-high 25 points. The Lions had no answer inside for Cameron Thomas, who scored 24 points, while Grant Best was a factor all over the floor with 21 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Playing hard until the end, senior Dontae Bell capped another fine all-around performance for Leo with 12 points.
The Lions still have a shot at a 20-win season, which would be quite the achievement for a team that was rebuilt from the ground up less than three years ago.
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