Smith, Ruckman Lead Evansville Reitz Back From 25-Point Deficit To Beat Franklin Central
This game was all but over. It was 58-33 at about the halfway point of the third quarter. Evansville Reitz had gone away from their stellar full-court press in the second quarter and Marcus Burk just shot the leather off…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThis game was all but over. It was 58-33 at about the halfway point of the third quarter. Evansville Reitz had gone away from their stellar full-court press in the second quarter and Marcus Burk just shot the leather off the ball. It was a 25-point lead. Then Reitz got going again. Led by Dru Smith, Reitz started pressing again and strung a few plays every minute together. Smith three followed by a steal and a layup. Smith got another steal and hit Ruckman on the wing for a triple. Reitz owned the last part of the game but Ruckman and Smith were not to be outdone.
Franklin Central went this season as Marcus Burk led them and in this one he was on. He scored 36 points and had most of those before we got to the final minute. Evansville Reitz had a 1-point lead and was at the line looking to go up by three. They missed both of the free throws and Franklin Central had a shot. Burk got the ball on the wing but was double-teamed immediately. He got a look at the buzzer but was off the mark. It was a 25-point comeback win for Reitz, a team looking to get back to where they were at a year ago, the 4A State Championship Game.
Player of the Game:
Dru Smith – 6’2 SG – Evansville Reitz
I wanted to go with Marcus Burk here if Franklin Central won and I even had to think about putting in Steven Ruckman as well because his energy is what seemed to lift Reitz effort level but Smith was and is the catalyst for this team. He was big in creating the turnovers late in the game that allowed Reitz back in this one. He didn’t make a ton of tough shots, not like Burk did, but he made tough plays on both sides of the ball. This was a team effort but Dru was fantastic.
Top Stat Lines:
Blake Ruckman (Evansville Reitz) – 29 points
Dru Smith (Evansville Reitz) – 18 points
Jarod McHugh (Evansville Reitz – 15 points
Marcus Burk (Franklin Central) – 36 points
Jimmy Weinke (Franklin Central) – 15 points
Grant Pedigo (Franklin Central) – 8 points
Next Up:
Franklin Central finished the season with a record of 18-7.
Evansville Reitz (22-4) will play New Albany tonight at 8:00 PM for the Regional Championship.