The McLennan Highlanders rebounded from Wednesday evening's disappointing loss with an 87-79 victory over the Weatherford Coyotes.
It was a hard-fought battle from start to finish. A Daniel Pinho Severo jumper put McLennan on the board less than a minute into the contest. Weatherford tied the game on a Tyrik Armstrong runner 30 seconds later and extended the lead to six, 12-6, with 16:51 to play in the first half. The Highlanders pulled within one on a Shannon Bogues 3-pointer and took the lead, 15-14, on a Fred Jackson jam with 14:28 to go. The Coyotes pulled away again and led 25-19. Zarious Wilson found his time to shine, using back-to-back 3-pointers to ignite a Highlander run. A dunk by Bogues, a jumper by Derrick Farquharson followed by a Wilson layup capped off the 12-3 McLennan run that put the Highlanders up by three midway through the half, 31-28. The Highlanders pulled away down the stretch, leading by as many as 15 and held the 55-45 lead at halftime.
McLennan continued to keep the Coyotes at arm's length in the second half. The Highlanders led by 13, 72-59 with five minutes to play. Weatherford rallied to pull within two several times. McLennan led 78-76 with 1:37 to go. Bogues and Isaiah Gurley combined to go 4-6 from the free throw line along with a dunk by Jackson and a layup by Jashawn Talton to ward off the Coyote comeback. Chance Edwards hit a 3-pointer for Weatherford with 10 seconds on the clock, but it wasn't enough.
Bogues scored 18 for the Highlanders and Wilson added 15. Talton and Jackson scored 12 and 10, respectively.
McLennan returns to action Wednesday hosting Hill. The women's game will tip off at 5:30 p.m. followed by the men at 7:30 p.m. The Highlassies will be participating in their annual Play4Kay event to raise money for breast cancer research. Fans are encouraged to wear pink and make a donation.
McLennan 87, Weatherford 79
McLennan: Zarious Wilson 6 0-0 15; Chamar Hawkins 3 3-5 9; Hayden Hunter 0 0-0 0; Derrick Farquharson 2 2-4 6; Shannon Bogues 7 3-6 18; Isaiah Gurley 2 5-7 9; Jashawn Talton 5 2-4 12; Daniel Pinho Severo 1 2-2 4; Fred Jackson 4 2-2 10; Julius Palmer 2 0-0 4; Totals: 32 19-30 87.
McLennan: Tyrik Armstrong 6 3-3 16; Ken Busby 6 4-8 19; Chance Edwards 2 4-6 10; Travis Barnett 1 1-2 3; Zach Naylor 7 3-5 19; Rokas Mazionis 0 0-0 0; Josh Ihek 0 1-4 1; Vince Glavan 0 1-2 1; Antanas Krimelis 3 3-3 10; Totals: 25 20-33 79.
3-pointers: McLennan 4 (Wilson 3, Bogues 1), Weatherford 9 (Busby 3, Edwards 2, Naylor 2, Armstrong 1, Krimelis 1); Total fouls: McLennan 23, Weatherford 25; Fouled out: Weatherford (Naylor); Halftime score: McLennan 56, Weatherford 45; Record: 25-1 (7-1).
