By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Tournament MVP Mike Morgan led four in double figures with 17 points, and the Edison Tech Inventors held on to defeat host Aquinas 71-69 in the championship game of the 2021 Mike Dianetti Memorial Tip-Off Tournament.
Morgan connected seven times from the floor. The senior guard converted on a pair of rebound and putback opportunities in the third quarter, the first of which gave the Inventors their largest lead of the second half at 50-41.
Mike Morgan gets in the lane for 2. @EDTechAthletics 41-37. pic.twitter.com/kfP6zwlI9E
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 4, 2021
“He’s a leader for us,” Edison head coach Reggie Simmons said. “He’s been starting since 10th grade. All he talks about is winning the championship. We’re going to ride him throughout the entire season.”
Mike Morgan at the horn. End 1st quarter: @EDTechAthletics 22 @AQ_Basketball 19 pic.twitter.com/olcadhG8Hm
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 4, 2021
Edison’s lead, though, was short-lived. Aquinas outscored the Inventors 12-6 to close the stanza.
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A one-possession game heading into the fourth, Aquinas briefly took the lead when Jack Bleier found Mason Blackwood in transition for a layup and a 57-56 Li’l Irish edge.
Jack Bleier finds Mason Blackwood for 2. @AQ_Basketball 57-56. pic.twitter.com/3Y8kMonO9O
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 5, 2021
Simmons pointed to his squad’s experience last weekend at the Nottingham Tournament in Syracuse.
“I told them ‘Hey, we’ve been through this before. Playing a tough Green Tech team, a tough Ithaca team. We’ve been there. So let’s get ourselves out of this hole. Let’s bounce back and play Edison Tech basketball.'”
All-Tournament Team selection Davijon Lipscomb scored nine of his 15 points during the fourth quarter to lift Edison (3-1) to its third straight win.
Davijon Lipscomb slashes from the wing. pic.twitter.com/9WBsop7plL
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) December 4, 2021
Sophomore Edmari Binion finished with 12 rebounds. Morgan corralled seven caroms to go with two steals.
“It’s just the energy,” Simmons said of his team’s effort on the boards. “We work on it in practice day-in and day-out. We know if we’re ever going to have a chance at a championship, we got to play great defense and we have to rebound. The guys have bought into it.”
Tyler Bethea scored 16 for Edison. Binion converted 8-of-8 free throws and contributed 10 points on the night. Marcqell Freeman connected on a pair of first-quarter triples for six points.
Bethea and Freeman joined Lipscomb and Morgan on the All-Tournament team.
Brandon Latson (5) and Jabari Johnson (3) rounded out the scoring for Edison.
Mykel White finished with 10 points for Aquinas. The junior guard’s catch-and-shoot jumper followed by a four-point play from Will Scanlon made it 70-69 game with less than two minutes remaining.
Bleier led Aquinas (1-1) with 19 points. Mason Blackwood had 13. The pair were named to the All-Tournament team.
Myles Blackwood had 18 points and Robert McCullough had five.
The game’s final score was originally reported as 72-69.
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