Highlanders top Angelina
The McLennan Highlanders battled the Angelina Roadrunners for a 73-59 victory this afternoon at The Highlands
The game was scoreless for the first two minutes of play. Angelina struck first with a bucket from Cade Holzman. McLennan's Jaylen Thompson drained a 3-pointer from the corner to put the Highlanders on the board. The game was tied at five with 17:02 to go in the first half. Three free throws from Cedric Kelley followed by a bucket from CJ Hall gave McLennan the 10-5 lead. Angelina kept it close, and McLennan led 15-13 midway through the half. A 3-pointer from Nick Shogbonyo followed by back-to-back long balls from AJ Barnes put McLennan up 24-13 with seven minutes to play in the first half. Angelina trimmed the lead back to six before a pair of free throws from Barnes followed by a steal-and-bucket by Shogbonyo gave the Highlanders the double-digit lead, 28-18. McLennan led 34-27 at the half.
The Highlanders pushed the lead to 11 early in the second half before Angelina began to rally. The Roadrunners cut the lead to two at 42-40 with 16:06 remaining in the game. A 7-2 McLennan run put the Highlanders back up by seven, 49-42, with 12:31 to go. The next seven minutes was a series of similar events. McLennan would push the lead to six or seven points, and Angelina would trim it back to two. The Highlanders led 59-57 with just under six minutes left to play. A pair of Cedric Kelley free throws followed by bucket from Barnes and 3-pointer by Dayvaughn Froe extended the McLennan lead to nine, 66-57 with 2:58 to play. Angelina stopped the run with a bucket from Holzman, 66-59. The Highlanders then ended the game on a 7-0 run to secure the victory.
AJ Barnes led McLennan with 16 points. Cedric Kelley and CJ Hall added 13 and 12, respectively. Jaylen Thompson and Nick Shogbonyo scored 10 points each.
Angelina: Hugi Hallgrimsson 0 0-0 0; Patrick Johnson 6 3-3 16; Michael Hogg 2 0-0 4; Braiden Wagner 0 0-0 0; Keddric Mays II 2 0-0 5; Daniel Sanchez 2 0-0 5; Kanaan Holder 3 4-4 10; Markell McClain 0 0-0 0; Cade Holzman 3 2-2 8; Totals: 22 12-15 59.
McLennan: Nick Shogbonyo 3 2-2 10; CJ Hall 3 4-4 12; Dayvaughn Froe 2 0-0 6; Jaylen Thompson 4 0-0 10; A.J. Barnes 6 2-2 16; Jared Clawson 1 0-0 2; Omarion Smith 0 0-0 0; Mason Lockhart 2 0-0 4; Kaleb Pouncy 0 0-0 0; Cedric Kelley 3 7-8 13;
Totals: 24 15-16 73.
3-pointers: Angelina 3 (Johnson 1, Mays 1, Sanchez 1), McLennan 10 (Shogbonyo 2, Hall 2, Froe 2, Thompson 2); Total fouls: Angelina 15, McLennan 11; Halftime score: McLennan 34, Angelina 27; Record: McLennan 12-3.