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Franklin
Monroe freshman Ethan Conley, grabs one of his 10 rebounds in
first quarter action at
Bradford Friday. The Jets soared in a 66-41
Cross County Conference victory over the Roaders.
Conley netted 21
points in the victory. CNO Photos by Don Selanders, goroaders.com
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Jets bomb
Roaders in conference action
Hyre and Conley lead FM attack
By George Starks
Bradford- Franklin Monroe senior Zach Hyre poured in 25 points, grabbed
12 rebounds and blocked three shots, while his freshman teammate, Ethan
Conley added 21 points with 10 boards and two blocked shots Friday as
the high flying Jets derailed the Bradford, 66-41 inside The Depot.
A great one-two punch for head coach Troy Myers and the Jets.
“It was a great combination but lately it’s been more like a one
punch,” said Myers. “To get those two guys to go together is going to
be the key. They understand what has to happen. As a team, we have to
learn to play around them. In order to win big time games, you need
that one-two punch and a supporting cast.”
In a season that has been a bit lackluster for Jets fans, the
aggression the team brought to the floor was a welcomed sight for Myers.
“Out tenacity was much better tonight,” said Myers. “We talked about
having a relentless attack before the game and we were relentless. We
haven’t had that all year. You have to figure out a way to play
relentlessly if you’re going to stay in big time basketball games.
That’s what we’re working toward. That’s what our standard has always
been.”
Like fighter Jets being launched off a carrier, FM took control of the
game from the outset.
Jumping out to the early 6-0 lead, the Jets went to the airways to take
the early 12-4 lead after one.
In that eight minutes, Hyre had already set the standard scoring six
points with three boards and two of his three blocks.
“Taking control of the game the way we did made me very happy,” said
Myers. “It’s probably only the first or second time we’ve done that
this year. I brought boxing gloves in tonight and related this to a 12
round fight. If your hands are down and you’re defensive from the
get-go, you’re going to get hit and you’re going to get hit hard. We’ve
been hit hard in multiple games this year and that cannot continue to
happen. You have to be the aggressor. You have to throw the first punch
and we responded to that, especially in the first four minutes (going
up 8-2 at the 4:01 mark). We had a nice run and finished off some easy
buckets and that set the tempo for the rest of the game.”
By the half and a 15 point lead, the writing was on the wall as only
the final score was left to be determined.
For the Jets, the offense was a welcomed sight but it all started with
defense, holding Bradford to a miniscule, 12 points.
Tonight, the defense looked good,” admitted Myers. “We’ve worked hard
in practice on this. Our rotations haven’t been that great with our one
on one defense. The way we rotate and play defense on the weak side
determines how well we play on defense overall. We did that tonight. We
missed some charge attempts that I’m not happy about. The guys were in
position but not willing to stand there and take one for the team.
We’re getting there though. We just have to put two and two together
and finish each possession.”
On the other end of the court stood first year Bradford coach,
Mackenzie Perry.
Perry came in from Troy Christian, serving under one of the best in Ray
Zawadski and his style of play mirrored that of his former coach.
Trying to turn the program around in Bradford, Perry wasn’t totally
disappointed with his team and the effort but a Jekyll and Hyde night
for the Roaders .
“It was like a tale of two halves,” admitted Perry. “The first
half we looked scared and didn’t come out the way we wanted to. The
second had they had a little more fight in them. Unfortunately, you
can’t play just one half. You have to get on it right from the get-go.”
When it comes to hoops at Bradford, winning happened years ago and
losing has become the norm.
“When you’re trying to fix a mindset, it takes a couple of seasons to
get them to understand they can believe in themselves,” said Perry.
“We’re still fighting through that process but I’ll tell ya, if my team
can play a whole game the way we played the second half, I see bright
things in our future,”
Bradford was paced by sophomore Parker Smith with 14 and senior Drew
Patty adding 11 markers.
In the second half, the two combined for six trey’s in an attempt to
close the gap of a lopsided game.
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Bradford
sophomore Dialaquan Millhouse, goes high in the air to
block the shot of FM senior Bradey Hessler.
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