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Trojans take 62-57 win over Lakers to advance to district championship Greg Rankin Sports Writer The Monticello Trojans played the Russell County Lakers Monday night, February 28, in the first round of the 47th District Tournament. Monticello was the host school for the tournament. First round action was held on Monday and Tuesday night and the district finals were played Friday night. The Trojans faced off against the number one seed in the district tournament. Russell County came into post-season play with a 14-11 record. The Trojans finished the season with a 15-10 record. Monticello lost both their district match-ups with the Lakers during the season. The first meeting between the two schools this season was held at Monticello and the Trojans led during much of the game but eventually fell to the Lakers with a final score of 68-55. When the two teams met for the second time, Russell County controlled most of the game and defeated the Trojans for the second time in less than a month. The Lakers won with a final score of 47-39. The third meeting between the two teams came Monday, and the Trojans reversed their trend during the year against the Lakers. Monticello defeated Russell County 62-57 and advanced to the finals of the 47th District Tournament. Monticello entered post season play as an underdog against the Lakers even though the tournament was being held at Monticello. From the first minute of the game, however, the Trojans didn¹t play like they were supposed to lose. Monticello jumped out to an early lead and was able to hold on to it through most of the game. After one quarter of play, the Trojans held an 11-9 lead. The second quarter was also close but Monticello was able to hold on to their lead throughout the period and build on it slightly. At the half, Monticello led the Lakers 28-23. Monticello and Russell County were both able to make 8 to 10 point runs during the third quarter. The Lakers cut into Monticello¹s lead early in the second half. They eventually tied the game at 33 and had possession of the ball. Monticello rebounded a missed 3-point attempt by the Lakers and scored quickly. The Trojans scored 10 points in a row after Russell¹s missed basket and built their lead back to 10 points. Monticello maintained the lead for the remainder of the game. At the end of three quarters, the Trojans held a 13-point lead against the Lakers, 46-33. Russell County outscored Monticello 24-16 during the final 8 minutes of play but it was not enough against the scrappy Trojans. Monticello held off the Lakers¹ charge in the final minutes and pulled out an unlikely win with a final score of 62-57. ³It was a good win for us,² said Coach Gary Abbott, ³Our guys have played through a lot this year and continued working hard everyday. All our players have improved throughout the year and it showed tonight. We were able to beat a team that had beaten us twice during the regular season. We are looking forward to the regional tournament after getting this win.² Monticello was led in scoring by Michael Borden with 19 points. Two other players also reached double figures for the Trojans. Phillip Inman put up 13 points and Zeb Davis added 11. The Trojans made seven 3 point field goals in the game. They also were able to get to the free throw line often, with 28 attempts. For the game, Monticello shot 61 percent from the line (17-28). The win over the Lakers guaranteed the Trojans a trip to the regional tournament for the first time since 1999. Monticello will play Danville on Tuesday night, March 8 at 6 p.m. The regional tournament is being played at Lincoln County High School. The Danville Admirals enter the tournament as the winners of the 45th District Tournament and Monticello goes into the region as the district runner-up from the 47th District. Add a comment |
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