Fort Mill handles T.L. Hanna in opening round of playoffs

It was not the Showdown in Milltown like it was last Friday, but Fort Mill won the Battle of the Buzz Wednesday night at home as the Yellow Jackets handily defeated the T.L. Hanna Yellow Jackets 61-34. Last Friday night, Fort Mill beat rival Nation Ford in a standing room only gym to win the Region 3-4A crown. The atmosphere wasn’t quite as electric for this one, but the result was the same and the performance was dominant. It was efficient, too, as the elapsed game time was about an hour and ten minutes.

“I was worried about that, especially knowing the crowd wouldn’t be near like it was Friday,” Fort Mill coach Dwayne Hartsoe said. “But the kids are focused, they know it’s the first round of the playoffs and it’s one and done. So I was proud of the way they came out with some intensity.”

After T.L. Hanna scored the first points of the game on a three-point play by Jahiem Handy, Fort Mill went on an 11-2 run and forced a timeout with 3 minutes, 34 seconds left in the quarter and an 11-5 lead. Fort Mill started the second period with a 12-2 stretch to push out to a 26-14 lead. It scored the last eight points of the half in 2:37 for a 36-20 lead at intermission. Brandon Joseph and Tanner Mitchell each had nine in the half. Keaton Griffin had six in the second quarter.

TURNING POINT

Fort Mill ran off 18 straight spanning the end of the second and start of the third quarters to put the game to bed. Mitchell had eight of those points to help give Fort Mill a 46-20 lead. Hartsoe emptied his bench in the fourth quarter with the game in hand.

CRITICAL

T.L. Hanna had a size advantage inside but Fort Mill was able to force Hanna into three-point shots with its 2-3 zone, and those shots were not falling. T.L. Hanna did not hit one in the first half and made their its one and only from long range in the fourth, well after the outcome had been decided. Hanna’s big man combo of Quin Jones and Stephon Wynn combined for only 15 points, with all but three of those coming in the first half. Fort Mill got to the line more often and hit 12 of 17 from there. T.L. Hanna was 4 of 10. Fort Mill only committed five fouls in the first half and one in the third quarter.

STAR CONTRIBUTORS

Freshly minted All-State guard Tanner Mitchell led all scorers with 17 points and Brandon Joseph was on his heels with 16, including three three-pointers. Both players had seven in the opening quarter. Quin Jones led T.L. Hanna with nine.

OVERHEARD

“That was our game plan to try to take away 20 and 32 and take our chances with them making some outside shots,” Hartsoe said. “And luckily they didn’t make many.”

“We got into some rhythm and got a few turnovers and some easy shots,” Hartsoe said of the deciding 18-0 spurt. “We got some run-outs and we were able to get up and down the floor.”

ON DECK

Fort Mill will host the Spartanburg/Ridge View winner Saturday in the second round.

BOX SCORE

This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 9:09 PM with the headline "Fort Mill handles T.L. Hanna in opening round of playoffs."