The McLennan Highlanders ended conference play with a 90-76 win over the Collin Cougars on Wednesday night in Plano.
The game started much like a 3-point contest as the two teams combined to drain five in the first two minutes of play. McLennan led 14-12 with 14:55 remaining in the first half and used a 6-0 run to extend the lead to eight with 13:07 on the clock. Collin used a 6-0 run of its own to cut the lead to two before the Highlanders began to pull away. McLennan took the 34-24 lead with 7:16 remaining in the half and led 50-38 at the break.
The Highlanders led by as many as 20 in the second half as they cruised to the easy victory.
Sophomore Jalen Jones led the Highlanders with 21 points and freshman Alex Mills added 16. Sophomores Jeff Beverly and James Harrison added 13 points each.
In women's action, the McLennan Highlassies fell to the Collin Lady Cougars 96-84.
Collin took the first double-digit lead of the game at 31-21 midway through the first half. McLennan used a 6-0 run to cut the lead to four less than two minutes later. Collin led 41-38 with 3:20 remaining in the half and extended the lead to 11 with just under two minutes to play. The Highlassies ended the half on a 6-1 run to cut the lead to six at halftime, 50-44.
The teams kept it close through the majority of the second half. Collin led 81-76 with 7:17 remaining in the game. The Lady Cougars pulled away, leading by as many as 16 down the stretch.
Freshman Caylinne Martin led McLennan with 20 points. Sophomores Adrienne Drake and Kaylin Roher scored 13 points each, and sophomore Kendra Wynn added 12.
The Highlassies end the season with an overall record of 11-16 and 6-8 record in conference play. The Highlanders will compete in the Region V Tournament beginning March 5 at Howard Payne University in Brownwood.
McLennan: Rashaan Surles 2 4-5 9; Jalen Jones 7 2-4 21; Elijah Mayes 1 0-1 2; James Harrison 6 0-0 13; Alex Mills 6 1-2 16; Ricardo Artis 3 2-2 8; Jeff Beverly 5 3-4 13; Aundre Jackson 2 2-2 6; Zach Charles 0 2-2 2; Totals: 32 16-22 90.
Collin: Liam O'Reilly 3 1-4 12; Tyrone Davis 2 5-6 9; Stefan Andelkovic 3 0-0 11; Matt Perry 1 0-0 3; Matt Kallead 1 0-0 3; Onaye Sims 7 5-6 21; Josh Wilchcombe 6 3-4 15; Totals: 23 14-20 76.
3-pointers: McLennan 9 (Jones 4, Mills 3, Surles 1, Harrison 1), Collin 6 (O'Reilly 2, Sims 2, Andelkovic 1, Perry 1); Total fouls: McLennan 17, Collin 18; Halftime score: McLennan 50, Collin 38; Record: McLennan 23-7 (8-4).
McLennan: Kaylin Roher 5 1-2 13; Kyera Coleman 2 0-0 5; Kendra Wynn 4 4-5 12; Demi Cumby 3 2-2 8; Sha'de Adedapo 1 2-2 5; Amani Davis 3 2-4 8; Adrienne Drake 4 5-7 13; Caylinne Martin 7 6-7 20;Totals: 29 22-29 84.
Collin: Brianna Williams 6 7-10 22; Shomari Harris 8 4-4 24; Jazmyne Walker 0 3-4 3; Taylor Jackson 3 0-0 8; Billie Marlow 3 0-0 6; Krystal Pickron 2 11-13 15; Jasmin Johnson 6 4-4 18; Totals: 28 29-35 96.
3-pointers: McLennan 4 (Roher 2, Coleman 1, Adedapo 1), Collin 11 (Harris 4, Williams 3, Johnson 2, Jackson 2); Total fouls: McLennan 22, Collin 22; Halftime score: Collin 50, McLennan 44; Record: McLennan 11-16 (6-8).
