The McLennan Highlanders held off a second-half charge by the Richland Thunderducks to secure the 93-69 win in the Joe White Classic at Hill College.a
McLennan opened the game on a 4-0 run but a bucket and one by Taven Washington quickly made it a one-point game, 4-3 with 18:27 to go in the first half. An up-and-under layup by Mason Lockhart started an 11-0 run for the Highlanders to give them a 12-point lead with just over 16 minutes to play, 15-3. Richland added three points before the Highlanders went on another run, this one 8-0 to make it a 17-point McLennan lead. The Highlanders pushed the lead to 21 at 42-21 with just a few ticks under three minutes remaining before the half. McLennan went on to end the half on a 12-3 run to make it a 30-point halftime advantage, 54-24.
The Highlanders kept the Thunderducks at arm's length through the first six minutes of the second half, leading 65-65 with 14:09 to go. Richland began to slowly chip away at the McLennan lead and got within 13 at 71-58 with 7:16 to play. The Highlanders used 6-0 run to begin pulling away once again, and Richland was unable to recover.
Nick Shogbonyo led McLennan with 25 points, including a perfect 4-4 from 3-point range. Jaden Juarez scored 18 points while Cameron Crockett, Jaden Walker and Mason Lockhart scored 10 points each.
McLennan 93, Richland 69
McLennan: Daylon Dickerson 2 1-1 5; Nick Shogbonyo 7 7-9 25; Jaden Juarez 5 5-7 18; Jhaden Brown 1 0-0 2; Antwone Gonzales 1 2-4 4; Cameron Crockett 4 2-4 10; Jaden Walker 4 2-2 10; Evan Chatman 0 0-0 0; Mason Lockhart 5 0-2 10; Jude Lambert 4 1-3 9; Totals: 33 20-32 93.
Richland: DaWaun Mims 0 0-2 0; Zion Bourgious 2 0-0 4; Elijah Brown 1 0-0 2; Trelin Green 2 1-2 5; Taven Washington 5 4-5 14; Jamille Barnett 3 6-9 12; Mannie Odo 2 1-2 5; Cjay Ingram 5 3-4 13; Jhi Jackson 1 1-2 3; Barrack Holland 1 0-0 3; Vaurice Patterson 0 0-0 0; Rodrick Yarbrough 1 0-0 2; Nehemiah Jones 2 0-0 4; Jerry Avery 0 2-2 2; Brian Williams 0 0-0 0; Totals: 25 18-28 69.
Halftime score: McLennan 54, Richland 24; 3-pointers: McLennan 7 (Shogbonyo 4, Juarez 3), Richland 1 (Holland 1); Total fouls: McLennan 23, Richland 28; Record: McLennan 4-0.
