Fuquay-Varina High/Garner High Standouts/Recap

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Fuquay-Varina Bengals made a visit to the Garner Trojans on Friday night in Greater Neuse River Conference action in what was an exciting game. Take a look at the recap and standouts from the contest.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams jumped out to early starts on the offensive end as the Garner High Trojans would use an early burst from [player_tooltip player_id='997729' first='Tanner' last='Mikulecky'] to get an 18-13 lead after one quarter. Mikulecky scored nine early points in the frame to pace the Trojans but the Bengals would stick around thanks to some eight second-chance points on their end of the floor. [player_tooltip player_id='1168834' first='Jake' last='Hart'] did a masterful job of filling the void wherever his team needed. He scored four points early in the frame while racking up rebounds. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the second quarter, Fuquay-Varina got their hot hand going in [player_tooltip player_id='1163510' first='Dylan' last='Setzer'], as he put up 11 points, and Hart kept things up on his end with 11 points as well, scoring in a variety of ways. The Bengals jumped out to a 39-32 halftime lead in the blink of an eye, continuing to move the ball and find buckets in the paint while also finding Setzer in space on the perimeter. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the second half, the Trojans would chip away at the lead right away with [player_tooltip player_id='1585788' first='Keaton' last='Bloms'] (9 pts) and Tanner Mikelucky (7 pts) leading an offensive surge, but Fuquay-Varina would continue to hold on. With 3:37 left, the Bengals led 45-44. It was 6-foot-6 senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1757721' first='Andrew' last='Schneider'] that would step up in a big way for the Fuquay-Varina offense with 10 points, showing off his ability to knock down shots in the mid-range and high-post areas. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bengals would go on a run and stretch the lead out to 55-48 with a minute left but the Trojans went on a run to close the quarter with a 3-pointer from [player_tooltip player_id='1385670' first='Chris' last='Crudup'] to make things 55-51 heading into the final quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The fourth quarter is when things got interesting on both sides. Back-to-back 3-pointers from the Bengals made it 61-54 with 5:59 to go then the Trojans went on an 8-0 run to make it 62-61 with 3:21 remaining in the game. The Bengals would take the lead right back to lead 65-61 with 2:48 remaining in the contest.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bengals led 67-63 with 2:21 left and it look like they would run away with things but they got a defensive stop which then led to a made 3-pointer in the corner from [player_tooltip player_id='1596874' first='Tayshaun' last='Whitner'] to make it 67-66 with 1:08 remaining. Garner would get another stop and have a few cracks at scoring, including with 23.7 seconds left but Fuquay-Varina would hold on to spoil the Trojans perfect conference record and escape with a 69-66 victory after two clutch free-throws from Setzer with 5.7 seconds remaining.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1168834"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":1757675,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Hart was impressive in leading the way for Fuquay-Varina High in the victory. He showed why he's a top name to know in the 2023 class in the state with 20 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and five steals en route to a 69-66 victory. He showed his composure when things got close in handling and distributing the basketball when things got close and in the end, it paid off with a victory. He's a prospect that DII and DIII schools should get eyes on in the 919 area at Fuquay-Varina High.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["1163510"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_player_featured_image":1757751,"_player_evaluations_1_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Setzer was another leader on the offensive end for Fuquay-Varina High with his ability to knock down shots on the perimeter and keep plays alive with his rebounding and ability to get to the free-throw line. He's a high-IQ sharpshooter that finished with 20 points including 7-for-8 from the free-throw line and three made 3-pointers to show off what he could do on the hardwood. He played smart with his matchups on the offensive end and showed he could still be effective with his clutch made free-throws down the stretch.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["1757721"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_player_featured_image":1757756,"_player_evaluations_2_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Schneider was a new face that turned heads with his play around the rim and knock down shots in the mid-range. He battled through some foul trouble in the first half but stayed involved in the second half with 12 of his 14 points coming in a pivotal third quarter. He's a long forward that uses his size well to battle on the boards and be an option in the high-post game with his shooting touch. He's another unsigned senior with size to keep an eye on with this group.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["997729"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":1757809,"_player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Mikulecky was impressive for Garner High despite the result and showed he could lead when the ball was in his hands. He finished with a game-high 24 points including a clutch 3-pointer to keep things close for the Trojans. He's a 6-foot-5 wing that can knock down 3-pointers and showed he could defend/rebound in flashes. He's an unsigned senior in the Raleigh for programs in the region to get eyes on.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["1385670"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_player_featured_image":1585766,"_player_evaluations_4_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Crudup showed flashes of his ability to attack off the bounce and rebound the ball, especially in the second half. He finished with 12 points but as he learns to find easy offense by buckling down on the defensive end, he's a prospect whose recruitment should change very soon in NC's 2024 class.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["1585788"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Bloms was impressive on the defensive end, showing he could fly around to block shots and be an anchor. On offense, he finished with just 11 points with nine coming in the second half. He was a bit flustered by the size of Fuquay-Varina's frontcourt but as he learns to operate more around the rim and high-post area, he'll learn to adjust to the physicality offensively.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":6,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-63cb6494b4fc2"} /-->