The Tigers started another road trip this week, visiting two ECC opponents in Anderson and Kings. Both of these games would not only have a huge impact on the regular season standings in the ECC but also on the playoff seeding in the Southwest Region and where the Tigers will fare in the bracket. The Tigers beat both of these teams earlier in the season behind hot shooting nights at home and were looking to complete the sweep on the road of both the Raptors and the Knights.
First, the Tigers traveled down south for a matchup with the Anderson Raptors. Despite losing a lot of key players from last season, as well as a tough start to this season, Anderson had recovered nicely and sat at second place in the ECC coming into this game, just 2.5 games back of league-leading Winton Woods. The frontcourt for Anderson dominated inside early, drawing fouls and scoring inside to put points on the board. Jack Sauer (12) led the scoring for the Tigers early, but the Raptors took a 5-point lead after the first. Anderson really stretched the lead entering the second quarter, led by Cassius Black, who scored nine of the Raptors’ sixteen points, and didn’t miss a shot in the quarter. This combined with the Tigers’ cold shooting in the second allowed the Raptors to take a 13-point lead heading into the intermission. Carson Brown (12) and Andrew Breese (12) came out hot entering the third, but the Raptors answered, as Caden Piening and AJ Austin-Robinson continued to put in work in the low post. Anderson maintained their double-digit lead going into the fourth and didn’t look back from there, pulling away and winning 58-38 over the Tigers.
The Tigers then traveled to Kings Mills on Friday, February 2nd to take part in the second edition of the Backyard Brawl, one of the most intense rivalries in all of Southwest Ohio. This one started heavily in favor of Kings, with the Knights scoring the first nine points of the game and capping that run with a Tommy Clark throwdown in transition. The Tigers answered early on threes from Sauer and Chase Martin (10) and the Knights led 13-6 after one. While both teams shot the ball well in the second, Kings maintained the lead for the entire quarter and led 25-16 at the break. The Knights started the third quarter on a 7-0 run and it looked like Kings was going to run away with this one. But the Tigers launched a ferocious comeback throughout the third and into the fourth, getting within five points with just three minutes remaining. After a couple of clutch buckets from the Knights to make it a 7-point game, the Tigers had another answer, as Will Bertke (11) converted a 4-point play after getting fouled on a left-wing triple. However, this wasn’t enough and the Tigers fell at Kings 46-40, with Bertke leading all scorers with 14.
The Tigers close their season on the road at West Clermont on Friday, February 9th. Be there!