Tournament MVP Jalen Pickett netted 19, and the Aquinas Li’l Irish held off a second-half rally to defeat the host McDowell Trojans (Pa.), 55-51 to claim the 2017 Martin Luther King Showcase.
Trailing by two after the third quarter, Pickett contributed five as Aquinas (8-2) outscored McDowell 14-9 in the final quarter. The senior guard finished 7-of-18 from the floor and 5-of-8 from the free throw line for a two-day total of 36 points. He finished the weekend with 22 rebounds, 10 steals, seven assists and four blocks.
Fellow senior Jason Hawkes hauled in a game-high nine rebounds and scored 12 points in the win. Hawkes collected four steals, and the Li’l Irish converted 21 McDowell turnovers into 20 points.
“It was a good road win,” Hawkes said. “We stuck together the whole game and worked as a team on defense to force turnovers. Kept it simple and stuck to the basics.”
Aquinas outrebounded McDowell, 29-18 including 12-3 on the offensive end for an 11-0 advantage in second-chance points.
“Defense and rebounding are keys to our success,” said first-year coach John McCauley. “We wanted to make sure we took care of the glass tonight. Our goal was to win the boards by 10-plus in tonight’s matchup.”
Anthony Flegler connected on three of five attempts behind the arc and chipped in with 11 points.
“We made good plays in the paint,” Flegler said. “That allowed me to shoot well from behind the arc.”
Pickett scored six as Aquinas jumped to a 20-8 lead after the first quarter. The Li’l Irish led by as many as 15 in the half. Tyler Kuna and Alex Morgan paced McDowell which connected on five 3-pointers to outscore the Maroon and White 23-10 in the third quarter and take a one-point edge into the final eight minutes.
On Saturday, the Li’l Irish never trailed and held Pittsburgh-Westinghouse to 13 of 51 shooting from the floor in a 48-36 victory. Aquinas outscored their opponent 17-8 at the free throw line. Graycen Carter and Hawkes grabbed six rebounds apiece to go with a Pickett’s game-high 14 boards for a 40-34 AQ advantage on the glass. Sincere Alston scored six and collected four caroms.
Aquinas hosts the Edison Tech Inventors, Wednesday night. A 7:30 pm tipoff is scheduled.
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