Franklin County Holiday Tournament Recap

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Continuing the busy season of holiday tournaments, I was back in the gym on Thursday morning, just 12 hours after leaving North Daviess. The Franklin County Holiday Tournament was featuring several talented prospects including <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578439' first='Mason' last='Harvey']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1275899' first='Braiden' last='Hogg']</strong> for Seton Catholic, George Mason baseball commit <strong>Brant Ertel</strong> for Franklin County, and <strong>Luke Faust</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1539555' first='Silas' last='Blair']</strong> for Triton Central. Follow along for all of the coverage from the main gym at Franklin County. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Franklin County 54, Seton Catholic 48</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the first quarter, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1275899' first='Braiden' last='Hogg']</strong> came out quick with a pair of mid-range pull-ups. He is a key piece to this team and was showing why early on. However, the Wildcats battled back with a couple of buckets inside and a pair of triples by <strong>Brant Ertel</strong> who has unlimited range from the outside. Hogg would hit a three just before the end of the quarter to give Seton Catholic a 14-13 lead after a 9-point quarter from the junior guard.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the second quarter, Franklin County continued to pound it inside and picked apart the Seton Catholic zone by getting it into the high post and dishing to the open player for a layup. <strong>Jace Lee</strong> and <strong>Tanner Weartz</strong> were feasting in the first half with 6 points each. This presence in the paint helped the Wildcats pull out to a 26-20 lead, but Seton Catholic battled back in the final minute with a putback by <strong>La'Monte Owens</strong>, a pair of free throws from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578439' first='Mason' last='Harvey']</strong>, and a mid-range jumper from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1297054' first='Jason' last='Moynihan']</strong> to tie the game at 26. Franklin County dominating the paint on both ends of the floor in the first half, but 9 turnovers kept the Cardinals right in the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>To start the second half, <strong>Elijah Falcone</strong> knocked down a three to make it a 9-0 run and give Seton Catholic the lead. However, Ertel answered for the Wildcats with 5 straight to cap off a 10-2 run to go back up by 5. The Cardinals would tie it back up, but with 4 minutes to go in the third with the game tied at 36, Hogg went down holding his ankle/foot, the same injury that caused him to miss the two previous games. The Wildcats would proceed to go on a 10-0 run to extend the lead to 46-36 on five easy layups inside. Lee continued working in the paint with three of those buckets in the paint. Harvey would make his first bucket of the game on an and-one to cut the lead to 7, but Seton Catholic would lead 46-39.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Harvey would hit a three for Seton Catholic to start the fourth quarter and cut the lead to 4 to get the Cardinals right back in the ball game. Hogg would also return for the Cardinals though he was in visible discomfort. With both Hogg and Harvey on the floor, Seton Catholic answered with a 12-0 run thanks to six Franklin County turnovers in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Cardinals led by 2 with 3 minutes remaining. Out of a timeout with 2 minutes to go, Ertel drilled a three to spark the Wildcats and take the lid off the basket. Franklin County would process to end the game on an 8-0 run and win the game 54-48.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brant Ertel</strong> led Franklin County with 18 points on 6-8 shooting and 4-4 from three. He also grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 3 assists. <strong>Jace Lee</strong> added 14 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 3 assists. <strong>Tanner Weartz</strong> added 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. The Wildcats certainly showed everyone the perfect way to beat this Seton Catholic zone.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1578439' first='Mason' last='Harvey']</strong> came alive in the fourth quarter with 10 points. He finished with 13 points and 6 rebounds. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1275899' first='Braiden' last='Hogg']</strong> added 13 points for the Cardinals, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1297054' first='Jason' last='Moynihan']</strong> added 8 points and 6 rebounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Triton Central 73, Franklin Couty 40</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the first quarter, Central came out quick and dominated the paint on both ends of the floor. The Tigers grabbed 5 offensive rebounds in the first four minutes and came up with four easy buckets in the lane. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1539555' first='Silas' last='Blair']</strong> had 6 points early to earn a quick 13-4 lead for Triton Central. The Tigers would continue to control the paint leading 14-2 in points in the paint and outrebounding the Wildcats 13-4 in the half. The Tigers would also forced four turnovers without committing a single one. Blair finished the quarter with 8 points as the Tigers led 20-7 after one.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second quarter was more of the same for Triton Central as they continued to force turnovers, dominate the paint, and get easy buckets on the offensive end. <strong>Brant Ertel</strong> was the only saving grace for the Wildcats in the first half as he scored 14 straight points on 4-6 shooting from three. The Tigers would go into the half with a 38-23 lead after a triple at the buzzer by <strong>Eli Sego</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers would cruise in the second half thanks to hot shooting and great defense as they would hold on for a 73-40 victory to win the Franklin County Holiday Tournament Championship.<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1293383' first='Isaac' last='Morgan']</strong> led the team with 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1539555' first='Silas' last='Blair']</strong> added 14 points and 6 rebounds. <strong>Eli Sego</strong> finished with 13 points, 5 steals, and 4 rebounds. <strong>Jace Stuckey</strong> added 12 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brant Ertel</strong> led the Wildcats with 18 points in the loss. <strong>Quinn Gillman</strong> added 10 points and 5 rebounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->