Heide Trask guard Myron McKoy driving the lane for the lay-in.
ELIZABETHTOWN — The Heide Trask Titans defeat the East Bladen Eagles for a 54-45 victory on Wednesday night. The Eagles started the first quarter flying with quick fastbreak baskets and hot shooting from beyond the arc. The Titans’ senior guard Issac Turner had nine points in the first quarter to help his team stick close to the host.
Guard Jacob Nixon’s number was called upon to carry the load on the offensive end as one of the Eagles’ leading scorers Malcolm Bolden got into early foul trouble. The Eagles’ scoring slowed down and the Titans’ offense began to find its groove in the second quarter. The Titans’ junior guard Myron McKoy controlled the flow of the offense with a mix of scoring and assists to close out the half on a frantic run. His dish to his teammate Isaiah Bromelle in the corner at the buzzer closed the gap between their opponents to two points.
The Eagles hurt themselves by turning the ball over in crucial moments that led to the Titans eventually taking the lead from the host. Bolden went out of the game early so the Eagles offense lacked the usual fluidity that has given their opponents headaches in the past. McKoy fully took over for the Titans in the final quarter of the game.
Heide Trask went into the fourth with a three-point advantage and quickly widened the gap with three straight buckets with a little under six minutes to play. East Bladen was getting to the free-throw line but was struggling to get their shots to go down. The Titans played the time management game once a healthy lead was established forcing the host to foul in an attempt to preserve precious minutes.
Nixon drove baseline to get a field goal to fall and put the Eagles within four points of their opponents with 1:07 remaining. The Titans weren’t phased by their opponents’ run because they were automatically behind the free-throw line. McKoy finished the game with 20 points and a hatful of assists to his name to get the Titans over the line for their 10th win on the season. Nixon led the game in scoring with 22 points despite the Eagles taking the defeat.
East Bladen will take on Fairmont at home in a SAC 7 match-up on Friday night with the hopes of bouncing back.