Five Takeaways: Aiken at Taft
After a sluggish start, the Aiken Falcons made a serious 2nd half push only to see their efforts fall short 54-48 to Taft Tuesday night. The Senators held a comfortable 33-15 lead at the half and it looked like they would cruise to victory. But Coach Ty Cass squad came out fired up for the 2nd half, going on a 18-0 run to tie the game midway through the 3rd quarter. Tied at 36 going into the 4th, critical turnovers and the play of 2019 W Chris’seon Stringer (PHO #54) proved to be to much for the Falcons to overcome.
Stringer lead Coach DeMarco Bradley Sr. squad with a game high 19 points while senior point man Dashawn Lawrence chipped in 14 while playing a strong overall floor game. For the Falcons senior guard Blake Smith lead the Falcons with 15 while 2019 PG D’arris Dean (PHO #86) scored 14.
Five Takeaways: Aiken at Taft
- The before mentioned Dashawn Lawrence is one of the best leaders in the city of Cincinnati. Lawrence not only scored 14 points but also played outstanding defense while also being a coach on the floor offensively. He continually got his team in the right sets throughout the evening and showed a smooth form from the outside.
- Aiken freshman PG/G Jakeda Stone is a name that you are going to hear a lot of over the next 3 ½ years. The young man made up for a sluggish 1st half to finish the evening with a strong 13- point performance. Stone showed a very good ability to score off the bounce and was fearless in attacking the rim. He also knocked down two shots from behind the arch. For the season Jakeda is averaging 13.2ppg on the season according to the CMAC website.
- Off the dribble Chris’seon Stringer is one of the hardest guards in the state. Coach Bradley did a good job of running sets that allowed Stringer to catch the ball free-throw line extended. And once “Grown Man” catches the ball in this area its either bucket, free-throws or both. The return of Stringer gives Taft a go-to guy when they must have a basket.
- The Senators have more reinforcements on the way as well with the pending debut of former Shroder guard Derrick Heard. Heard averaged nearly 13 points and 4 assists for the Jaguars last year and will bring another play-maker and shot-maker to the Taft squad. The way their schedule sets up Heard should be eligible this weekend as the Senators play Western Hills Friday and Toledo Rogers on Saturday.
- There is now a three-way tie for first place in the CMAC with Woodward, Hughes and Taft all sitting at 3-1. The Senators have home dates with both the Bulldogs and Big Red remaining on the schedule. Accomplish the difficult task of a sweep those two games and the Senators could return to the top of the mountain in this competitive conference.