The West Carroll War Eagles had to battle back from an early ten-point deficit in the first quarter to claim the district title with a 79-69 win over the Huntingdon Mustangs Thursday night in Huntingdon.
The Mustangs came out smoking hot from the field as they made their first six shots, and four of those came from behind the three-point line as they led 7-0 and then 19-9 before the War Eagles, behind Jalen Anglin’s ten points, narrowed the margin to 23-21 at the end of the first quarter. Jeb Atkinson made three shots from long range in the first and Javon Pritchard added a three-pointer to give the Mustangs the edge after one.
Luke Moore, the tournament and regular season MVP, showed in the second quarter why he deserved those honors as he scored 13 of his 24 points in that quarter. The War Eagles bested the Mustangs by a margin of 24-11 in the second to take a 45-34 lead at the half. Anglin also added seven points in the second as Moore and Anglin combined for 36 points in the first half.
The Mustangs held Moore and Anglin to only two points combined in the third, but the War Eagles turned to Andrew Huff, who scored seven points in the quarter as the War Eagles stretched their lead to 61-46 after three quarters.
Grant Bartholomew scored 13 points for the Mustangs in the fourth, but the War Eagles despite being outscored 23-18 in the final frame, hung on to win as they went to the foul line 19 times in the fourth and made ten. Josh Clark scored seven points with all his points in the fourth coming from the charity stripe.
Both squads made six three-pointers for the game, and the Mustangs, after making the first four in the first, missed 14 three-pointers in a row before making their last two attempts for the game. The War Eagles ended up 13 for 23 from the line, and the Mustangs went to the line nine times, making five for the game.
The War Eagles were led by Moore with 24, followed by Anglin 19, Clark 13, Huff 11, Xander Moon 10, and Robinson 2. The Mustangs were led by Bartholomew with 21, followed by D’Allen McCord 14, Atkinson 11, Keyshun Hoard 11, Clark 9, and Pritchard 3.
The War Eagles advanced to the championship round after defeating the Hollow Rock-Bruceton Central Tigers 62-20 in the district semifinals on Feb. 23.
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Rebels take 3rd over Tigers
In Thursday night’s consolation game, the hosting McKenzie Rebels claimed third place in the district tournament with a 70-48 win over the Central Tigers.
The Rebels edged out a small 13-12 lead in the first quarter and widened that lead in the second to hold a 29-19 advantage at the half.
The Tigers rallied to outscore McKenzie 15-12 in the third, but the Rebels finished with a big 29-point showing in the fourth over 14 points from Central.
Johnathan Moore was McKenzie’s and the game’s top scorer with 21 points, followed by Marquez Taylor 15, Eli Surber with 12, Zayden McCaslin and Elijah Seivers with 8 apiece, and Jaden Currie and Caleb Gill with 3 each.
Thomas Crews was out front for the Tigers with 14 points, followed by Caleb Haskins 11, Austin Craig 7, Noah Hampton 6, Daniel Inman 4, and Cameran Lowe Preston Hollingsworth with 3 apiece.
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Mustangs 71-68 over Rebels in semifinals
The Huntingdon Mustang basketball pulled off a rare feat last Tuesday (Feb. 23) as they defeated the McKenzie Rebels for the third time this season. But that third time sent the Mustangs to the district title game with a hard fought 71-68 win over the Rebels.
Grant Bartholomew scored 18 first half points and 26 for the game to lead the Mustangs, followed by Jeb Atkinson 10, Pritchard 9, Hoard 9, Bradley 8, Clark 6, and McCord 3. Marquez Taylor led McKenzie with 19, followed by Bryson Steele 17, Eli Surber 15, McCaslin 5, Gill 5, Moore 4, and Sievers 3.
