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Sports

Mehlville Boys Finish Seventh in Southside Classic

The Panthers defeated Hancock 50-42 in the seventh place game Friday at Mehlville.

One of the primary keys for success for the 2011-12 Mehlville boys basketball team is good health.

And that was put to a test Friday in the seventh place game of the Southside Classic. In a span of less than three minutes in the fourth quarter, Adis Mujakic and Zach Hughes went down with ankle injuries. Neither were able to put any weight on their injured legs as they were taken to the trainer's room to be treated.

Despite the injuries, the Panthers were able to win their first game of the new season as they beat Hancock, 50-42 at Mehlville High School.

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"I hope they are just sprained ankles and that they will be back soon," Mehlville coach Andy Guethle said of the injuries to Mujakic and Hughes.

Mujakic, who led the Panthers in rebounding last season and was third in scoring, had 22 points in a 58-56 loss to Affton in the consolation semifinal game. Hughes was a key contributor Friday as he scored 15 points in the win over the Tigers.

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The second half did in the Panthers in their first round game against Lutheran South. The game was tied 13-13 at halftime but the Lancers pulled away in the final two quarters and won 52-37. Brendan Merz, the team's top returning scorer (9.7 points a game) hit four 3-pointers in the game and scored 16 points for the Panthers. No other Mehlville player finished in double figures.

Mehlville had a three-point lead going into the fourth quarter against Affton as Mujakic not only had the 22 points but also grabbed 13 rebounds. But the Affton outscored Mehlville 17-12 in the fourth quarter.

"Affton made some runs on us but we did not panic and were able to keep our composure," Guethle said.

Hughes had 12 points in the first half Friday as the Panthers led 27-17 at halftime. Hancock was not able to get any closer than six points the rest of the way. Merz led the way with 18 points, nine of them coming in the fourth quarter. The senior had four more 3-pointers giving him 11 for the tournament.

"One of our keys this year is to take good care of the basketball," Guethle said. "We had too many turnovers in the first game and then had only five against Affton although we had 21 tonight."

The biggest key though, with no returning players averaging in double figures, will be on the defensive end of the court.

"We need to play good defense and talk on defense," Guethle said. "If we play defense like our hair is on fire, we can compete with just about anyone."

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