Story by Kadin Rogers
A new season is officially underway for the Monmouth-Roseville Titans varsity basketball team, as they began winter action in the Orion 10 & 32 Tip-Off classic on Tuesday night. Back under the guidance of returning head coach Chuck Grant, the Titans took on the (1-0) Abingdon Avon Tornadoes, who were coming off a win of their own against United in their first game of the tournament play.
Likely bolstered by the momentum of their Monday win, A-Town would jump out to an early 14-6 lead on the back of 10 quick points from junior guard Kolbe Hightower. A timeout from Monmouth-Roseville after this run would prove effective, as the Titans rattled off nine straight points of their own from seniors Andy Myers and Payton Thompson to give Monmouth-Roseville the 15-14 lead going into the second quarter. From this point and deep into the third quarter, both teams would trade blows until Abingdon-Avon found a way to break through with 6 unanswered points to the Tornadoes up 38-33 with 5 minutes to play in the third quarter. The Tornadoes would also close the quarter out strong as Alex Foutch and Hayden Little poured in baskets to take a 42-34 lead into the final 8 minutes of play.
Ayden Stromson’s forced turnover and score early in the 4th gave A-Town their first double digit lead of the game. Down to 5 minutes to play in the game, Dame Thioubou and Jacob Hall traded buckets to keep the lead at 8 for the Tornadoes. Monmouth-Roseville’s offense had life for the waning minutes of the game, however their efforts were mostly matched by A-Town, as the Tornadoes finished strong on route to a 59-49 win over the Titans. The loss for Monmouth-Roseville starts their season off with an 0-1 record, but they will get a chance to get in the win column on Wednesday night with a game against new Three Rivers Conference rival Mercer County.
