Mohegan — Old Lyme senior Olin Frederiks stood outside his team’s locker room after Sunday’s CIAC Division V boys’ basketball final and, for several minutes answered, every question about how a game that started with such promise went so wrong.

“We hit them first,” Frederiks said. “They came back, and we just never were able to really hit back after that.

“They just kept getting ahead and ahead. We just couldn’t fight back.”

The Wildcats jumped out to an eight-point lead on top-seeded Innovation of New Britain in the team’s first state final, then got jumped on the rest of the game. The Ravens used their length and full-court defensive pressure to roll to a 62-41 win at Mohegan Sun Arena.

“They’re definitely one of the more athletic teams we’ve played this year,” Frederiks said. “We didn’t shoot well, (but) you can never blame it on that. (Innovation) played a great game.

“Obviously, there’s a lot of plays I wish we could get back, (but) that’s really not the reality.”

Ray Doll had 11 points and eight rebounds for third-seeded Old Lyme (21-6) and Brady Sheffield scored 11. Aedan Using added eight points and five rebounds and perennial defensive pest Liam Holloway had a game-high five steals.

The Wildcats led 10-2 with 3 minutes, 33 seconds left in the first quarter. They made 5 of their first 10 shots. That included four shots that they took after an offensive rebound, two of which they made for four points.

Old Lyme’s offense proceeded to spiral into the abyss thanks to a combination of missed shots and Innovation’s fantastic defensive effort. The Wildcats finished shooting 25-percent (14-of-56). They also turned it over 21 times.

“They’re probably quicker and more athletic top-to-bottom than any team we saw,” Old Lyme head coach Kirk Kaczor said. “Plus they’ve got some bigs that are really athletic and can block some shots.

 “I also just feel like, in some ways, we just didn’t play as well as we normally play. We scheduled some (good) outside competition. We played (Division II semifinalist) Glastonbury (a 53-38 loss on Feb. 13). We played tighter with Glastonbury than we did (against Innovation) tonight.

“All credit to (Innovation) because they played great and they took us out of it and they won. They beat us, but I would’ve liked us to put up more of a fight than we did today.”

Both teams turned it over 21 times, but the Ravens made Old Lyme’s hurt much, much more. They had a 22-4 advantage in points off turnovers. They also had a 16-0 edge on fast-break points.

“For the stage that we were on, I’d say top two,” Innovation head coach Matt Lance said about where Sunday’s effort ranked this season. “We start every practice with a rebounding drill and a defensive drill.

“I think when it came time to make plays in the second half, they were locked in defensively. We started to get easy looks because we were turning them over.”

Linwood Hazelwood had 14 points, nine rebounds, two blocks and two steals for Innovation (24-2), which has been around for just six seasons.

The Ravens were 0-15 in their second season before Lance took over. They went 2-18 and 6-14 the next two seasons, then made states last year.

“I believe we made a name for ourselves and we earned respect,” Hazelwood said. “That’s really what we wanted to do. … Not a lot of people are (familiar with us).”

Seniors Ramiesh Bogle (11 points, eight rebounds, five assists, four steals) and Leonard Okonya (12 rebounds, three blocks) also had big games for Innovation.

The Ravens started the second half with a 30-23 lead and opened with an 8-0 run.

Old Lyme finally got their first points of the quarter on Using’s three-point play with 3:54 remaining.

“Down seven with a couple of guys sitting on the bench with foul trouble, I think we felt pretty good that we were only down seven,” Kaczor said. “The energy seemed pretty good in the (locker) room. We seemed ready to go.

“We turned the ball over a bunch to start the third quarter … We just couldn’t score.”

It was the final game for the likes of seniors Quinn Romeo, Holloway and Frederiks, but Old Lyme will have a strong core returning next season in juniors Connor Hogan, Jared Ritchie, Doll, Sheffield and Using.

“I wouldn’t (have wanted to) do this with anyone else,” Frederiks said about his team. “I thought it was a great game. We fell short in the two games that really mattered (the Shoreline Conference and Division V finals).

“They have a great junior class (coming back). I have no doubt that they’ll be back to both these (finals) next year and win them.”

n.griffen@theday.com