Recap by Kadin Rogers
The Monmouth-Roseville Titans basketball team got back on the court for the third time this week in a busy stretch of action. After back to back wins against Knoxville and Canton, the Titans travelled to Aledo to take on new TRAC-West rival Mercer County in a rematch of a game that was played back in November at the Orion Tip-Off Classic. The Golden Eagles got the 15 point win in that contest, but it would be the Titans this time around pulling in a hard fought 63-59 road victory.
Right out of the gate, Mercer County would open up with a strong start on the back of a 9-2 run, prompting the first timeout of the ball game from Monmouth-Roseville. The Titans would respond well out of the timeout however, as Nick Huston put himself on the line for two points then followed that up with a three ball to close the gap. M-R would then take their first lead of the game on a Cee Sarcomo and one. This back and forth pace would continue as MerCo held on to a 16-14 lead after the first quarter. Seniors Ethan Clark, Andy Myers and Payton Thompson would be the main catalysts for a high scoring second period for the Titans, as they combined for 17 points in the quarter, coupled with a strong finish to the half by Nick Huston that would send the game to a stalemate at 38 all after one half.
Midway through the third quarter the game would still be deadlocked at 42-42, but the Golden Eagles wound up finding the hot hand at the end of the period, closing the third on a 10-3 run to take their largest lead since the beginning of the game at 52-45 heading into the fourth. Mercer County was able to maintain their lead on the game into the first few minutes of the period, but the Titans started to find a second gear in crunch time. A Lars Bergren layup followed by two shots at the charity stripe by Cee Sarcomo would cut the lead to just 2 points. An Ethan Clark deep mid range jumper knotted the game at 57-57, before Payton Thompson would take the lead on a strong drive to the rim. A pair of Golden Eagles free throws would tie the game right back up, but Nick Huston’s layup with just 20 second to play put the Titans back on top and after Mercer County came up empty on their ensuing possession, a pair of Payton Thompson free throws would salt the game away and give the Titans their third straight victory.
With the win, the Titans improve their overall record to 5-4 on the season, and get right back on the court with another back to back on Monday and Tuesday, first at home against Abingdon-Avon then on the road at Farmington. In the final stat book for the Titans, it was a balanced scoring attack as Nick Huston finished with 14 points, Cee Sarcomo and Payton Thompson had 13 a piece, while Ethan Clark ended with 9.
For the replay of the WMOI radio broadcast of the game, go to the SPORTS PODCAST section.
