***Recaps and photo courtesy of holidaybasketball.com and Chris Derry***
Game 5 Recap: Pittsfield 44, Monmouth-Roseville 30
Finding themselves trailing 10-4 after the first quarter, Pittsfield saw red. The Saukees went on a 26-4 run with 48 seconds left in the first half. Monmouth-Roseville’s Titans just couldn’t buy a bucket in the 2nd quarter and the game was over from that point. The Titans climbed back a bit in the fourth quarter, but still fell by a final score of 44-30.
That Pittsfield run represented the only lead change in the game. The Saukees moved the ball around well, and racked up 13 assists on their 15 total field goals. The Titans had entered the tournament with recent impressive wins against Quincy Notre Dame, West Hancock, and Knoxville. Shots just weren’t landing in this one, however, as they shot just 10-for-39 (25.6%) from the floor.
Pittsfield was led in scoring by Keller Personett’s 15 points. TJ Reel also finished in double figures with 10 points. Carter Klatt had a solid game with seven points and a game-high 11 rebounds. The Saukees’ 35 rebounds represent a tournament-high so far.
The Titans had one double-digit scorer in Connor Thompson’s 11. He also had seven rebounds to tie teammate Ben Anderson on the boards. Monmouth-Roseville scored the only four fast break points in this slower-paced contest.
Pittsfield advances to play the winner of the Macomb/Wethersfield game. That quarterfinal is Game 15 and will occur at 8:00pm on Tuesday. Monmouth-Roseville will look to bounce back against the loser of that same Macomb/Wethersfield contest. The Titans will play on Tuesday afternoon at 1:00pm.
Chris Derry
December 27, 2021
Game 6 Recap: Macomb 56, Wethersfield 23
The Bombers (9-3) took flight in this first round matchup with the Flying Geese of Wethersfield (1-8). Macomb led 35-5 at the half and were victorious by a final score of 56-23. Wethersfield – a young team that lost all of its starters from last season – struggled to get anything put together. The taller, more veteran Macomb squad took advantage, winning the points in the paint battle 32-10.
Wethersfield battled with the scrappy defense of Macomb all night. Macomb swatted away 14 steals and turned those into 22 points off turnovers. As hot as Macomb was in the first half, things significantly cooled off in the second half, where they only shot just 34.6% from field goals. Macomb won the rebounding battle with 29 boards…15 of which were on the offensive side.
Macomb was led in scoring and rebounding by Caden Mainland’s 14 points and five rebounds. Two other teammates (Connor Hamm and JT Jeter) both finished with eight points. The Bombers shot 8-for-9 from the free throw stripe.
Wethersfield’s Aimery Jackson had nine points to lead his squad. Landon Sauer’s five rebounds and three blocks were each a team-high.
Macomb advances to the second round and will face Pittsfield in Game 15, at 8:00pm on Tuesday. Wethersfield will look to bounce back in a matchup tomorrow with Monmouth-Roseville at 1:00pm in Game 11.
Chris Derry
December 27, 2021
Game 7 Recap: Eureka 43, Abingdon-Avon 41
Another nail-biter first round matchup found the Hornets of Eureka topping the Tornadoes of Abingdon-Avon by a score of 43-41. This game had so many peaks and valleys for both teams. Eureka led by as many as nine points and Abingdon-Avon led by as many as seven. There were four lead changes and three tie scores. This game featured good defense, charges taken, and a lot of missed shots (the two teams shot a combined 38% from the floor).
The Tornadoes stepped up and played better than one could’ve assumed based on their prior-tournament record. The Hornets played them step-for-step, however. Abingdon-Avon doubled up Eureka in the battle for the paint 24-12. However, Eureka had more steals, second chance points, and the tournament’s leading scorer (as of press time).
Eureka’s Tyler Heffren is the aforementioned current leading scorer for the tournament with 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting. Slater Wilcox had a team-high six rebounds. Trevor Heffren started the game shooting 0-for-10, but then nailed arguably the two largest baskets of the game with under two minutes left in the game.
Abingdon-Avon featured two double-digit scorers in Easten Schisler (18 points) and Parker Stoneking (11 points). Schisler also led the game in rebounds with seven grabs and his team in assists with three.
Eureka (8-3) advances to the quarterfinals to play in Game 16 at 9:30pm Tuesday, awaiting the winner of the Lewistown/West Hancock matchup. The loser of the Lewistown/West Hancock game will play Abingdon-Avon in Game 12 at 2:30pm Tuesday.
Chris Derry
December 27, 2021
