Middleton, Fla. — As the final seconds of yet another loss in its own tournament ticked down, The Villages High School boys basketball team's title hopes once again went up in smoke.

The Buffalo were stymied in the nightcap of Day 1 at the 10th annual Battle at The Villages by visiting Norland (Miami), turned away from a chance to win their first-ever Battle championship in a 68-51 loss inside the VHS gymnasium.

After the loss to Norland on Thursday, VHS rebounded for a 60-51 win over West Forsyth (Ga.) on Friday, before falling 70-55 to Covington Catholic (Ky.) on Saturday to finish sixth. 

"(I've) got to give a lot of credit to Miami Norland and Coach Lawton Williams, they're a very well put together and mature basketball team that knows exactly what they're trying to get accomplished," said Buffalo head coach Colt McDowell. "I thought our guys fought, scrapped and clawed for a couple plays there in the first half ... but we've got to learn how to play defensively no matter what and share the ball better on offense. Our group is young and they're learning, and they're learning how to be together."

A slow start set The Villages (5-7 overall) back 17-10 after the first quarter of play, with the 1-2 punch of Triston Wilson and Marcus Allen combining for 13 points for Norland (6-4). Jared Thompson did his part to keep the Buffalo in it early, scoring eight points — including a pair of 3-pointers — in the opening period.

The Buffalo then struggled to make shots against a morphing Vikings defense throughout the second quarter, hitting just two shots from the floor in the period to eventually trail 34-25 at the half. VHS finished the first half just 5-of-19 from the field.

"We're still young and we're learning how to recognize base defenses," McDowell said. "If you don't get (shots) to drop and they get a couple to fall, it starts to snowball pretty quickly."

The Villages trailed by double digits throughout the majority of the third quarter, seemingly frustrated by a shifting Norland defense that presented numerous looks against an inexperienced corps of Buffalo guards. VHS found a little boost by way of the deep ball, knocking down three 3-pointers to ultimately pull back within 49-42 entering the fourth quarter.

But that's where the Vikings from Miami ended things rather quickly, scoring seven of the first nine points in the final period to stretch their lead to 56-44 and force a Buffalo timeout. VHS never pulled back within a handful of possessions again.

"When we get down, we shouldn't give up on each other," VHS sophomore forward Chris Washington Jr. said. "We've got to learn as a team to keep going when mistakes happen — including me — I've got to stop getting mad when things aren't going my way."

The loss cemented a run of 10 straight Battle at The Villages events that the host Buffalo have failed to capture an elusive tournament title. 


Cody Hills can be reached for questions or comment at cody.hills@tvcs.org or by calling (352) 259-6890.