2021-2022 High School Season
Hall of Fame Classic
Category: 2021-2022 High School Season Written by Jeff Schoenle
(Braden Smith from spring 2021)
In the championship game at New Castle, Westfield used a dynamic third quarter to open up a 25 point led, then weather a Cathedral comeback attempt to defeat the Irish 74-63. Cam Haffner scored 30 in the game, including a pair of crucial three-pointers in the fourth quarter and sealing the game from the foul line in the final minute. Fellow senior Braden Smith had a triple-double of 12 points, ten rebounds, and ten assists to go along with seven steals and a pair of blocks for good measure.
Westfield used a 25-5 run in the third quarter to open up a 55-30 lead on the Irish, but Jason Delaney went to his bench, and they responded. Tayshawn Comer, Lebron Gough, and Deric Cannady were the catalysts behind the Irish resurgence, cutting the Westfield advantage to as few as six in the fourth quarter.
The late threes from Haffner, as well as timely baskets from Nic Depasquale and Alex Romack, were enough space for Shane Sumpter's squad, as the Shamrocks claimed their first Hall of Fame Classic title.
The All-Classic team consisted of Homestead's Fletcher Loyer, Cathedral's Tayshawn Comer and Xavier Booker, Westfield's Nic Depasquale, and Cam Haffner. Braden Smith of Westfield took home Most Valuable Player honors after notching 20 points, 20 rebounds, 18 assists, 12 steals, and three blocks in the pair of games today.
Westfield 17 13 29 15 - 74
Cathedral 14 9 21 19 - 63
Westfield: Cam Haffner 30 points (9/17 FGs, 7/12 3Ps, 5/7 FTs), 7 rebs; Alex Romack 15 points (7/8 FGs, 1/2 FTs), 6 rebs; Nic Depasquale 15 points (4/8 FGs, 3/3 3Ps, 4/6 FTs), 3 rebs; Braden Smith 12 points (5/11 FGs, 2/3 FTs), 10 rebs, 10 asts, 7 stls, 2 blks; Kai Butterworth 2 points (1/1 FGs)
Cathedral: Tayshawn Comer 28 points (10/14 FGs, 4/6 3Ps, 4/4 FTs), 5 rebs, 2 asts, 2 stls; Xavier Booker 12 points (4/12 FGs, 3/6 3Ps, 1/2 FTs), 2 rebs; Jaron Tibbs 6 points (1/4 FGs, 4/5 FTs), 4 rebs; Deric Cannady 6 points (3/9 FGs), 3 stls; Jaiden Malachi 4 points (1/2 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 3 rebs; Lebron Gough 3 points (1/3 FGs, 1/2 FTs); Jaxon Edwards 2 points (1/3 FGs), 3 rebs; Jake Davis 2 points (1/3 FGs), 5 rebs
Westfield used a dynamic second quarter the gain control of the game and hung on in the end against a tough Connersville squad in the opening game of the Hall of Fame Classic.
In the consolation game of the 2021 Raymond James Hall of Fame Classic, Fletcher Loyer came out on fire in the first quarter, scoring 17 points in the opening eight minutes as Homestead opened a lead and were never seriously threatened.
The Purdue-bound guard scored 30 on the night after dropping 28 in the first game of the day, hitting seven threes in the nightcap. Grady Swing added 10 points while the Leeper brothers combined for 13 points and 17 rebounds and patrolled the paint for Chris Johnson's team.
Connersville struggled to find any offensive solutions to the size of Homestead. Josh Williams led Connersville with a dozen points, but he was the only player on his team to make more than a single field goal, as Connersville shot just 11-36 for the game. Homestead also dominated the glass by a 35-12 margin.
Connersville 10 10 5 8 - 33
Homestead 24 6 15 17 - 62
Connersville: Josh Williams 12 points (4/6 FGs, 2/3 3Ps, 3/4 FTs), 3 rebs; Lucas Barron 4 points (1/7 FGs, 1/2 3Ps, 1/2 FTs); Tobey Billups 3 points (1/6 FGs, 1/3 3Ps), 3 asts, 2 stls; Kaleb Sparks 3 points (1/5 3Ps); Gage Brown 3 points (1/2 FGs, 1/4 FTs); Carter Bodwell 3 points (1/3 3Ps); James Williams 2 points (1/3 FGs); Luke Sullenbarger 2 points (1/1 FGs)
Homestead: Fletcher Loyer 30 points (10/17 FGs, 7/12 3Ps, 3/3 FTs), 4 rebs, 4 asts, 2 stls; Grady Swing 10 points (3/7 FGs, 4/4 FTs), 4 rebs; Andrew Leeper 7 points (3/5 FGs, 1/1 FTs), 12 rebs; Grant Leeper 6 points (3/4 FGs), 5 rebs, 2 asts, 4 blks; Kyron Kaopuiki 4 points (2/4 FGs), 2 rebs, 2 asts; Ifeanyi Ezeakudo 3 points (1/1 3Ps); Tucker Day 2 points (1/2 FGs)
The Shamrocks used a 9-0 to open the second period punctuated by a Braden Smith steal and dunk. The 6'5 forward from Westfield, Alex Romack, was particularly effective in making himself available at the rim, as he scored eight of his ten points in the first half. The damage for Connersville continued until the end of the quarter, as Tobey Billups picked up his second foul on a charge, then Braden Smith found Cam Haffner 28 feet out on the right side, and Haffner's three found the bottom of the net as the buzzer sounded, sending Westfield into the locker room with a twelve-point lead.
The Spartans would stick around in the third as Kaleb Sparks would hit a pair of threes in the third, but Connersville would struggle to generate quality looks against the quickness of Westfield.
Lucas Barron would begin Connersville's comeback attempt in the fourth. The 6'4 junior scored a couple of times in the lane, and Westfield, who started to work the clock with over three minutes left, committed some turnovers and lost their offensive rhythm. A Carter Bodwell three would have given the Spartans the lead missed, and a Braxton Myers putback rolled off the rim, thus ending Connersville's comeback attempt. However, Westfield would seal the game with a couple of baskets late to advance to the Raymond James Hall of Fame Classic title game.
It was a balanced effort for the Rocks, led by Haffner's 11 points. Romack, Trey Buchanan, and Nic Depasquale all added 10, while Braden Smith scored just 8 on 3-10 shooting, but added 10 boards, 8 assists, and 5 steals to fill the box score in the victory.
Westfield 9 22 10 10 - 51
Connersville 10 9 13 11 - 43
Westfield: Cam Haffner 11 points (4/8 FGs, 2/4 3Ps, 1/2 FTs), 3 rebs; Nic Depasquale 10 points (4/9 FGs, 2/3 FTs), 3 rebs, 3 asts; Alex Romack 10 points (5/6 FGs), 6 rebs; Trey Buchanan 10 points (4/7 FGs, 2/5 3Ps); Braden Smith 8 points (3/10 FGs, 2/2 FTs), 10 rebs, 8 asts, 5 stls; Kai Butterworth 2 points (1/1 FGs)
Connersville: Kaleb Sparks 11 points (4/6 FGs, 3/5 3Ps), 3 rebs; Lucas Barron 8 points (4/6 FGs), 2 rebs; Carter Bodwell 6 points (2/4 3Ps); Braxton Myers 5 points (2/5 FGs, 1/2 3Ps), 4 rebs; Josh Williams 5 points (1/6 FGs, 1/5 3Ps, 2/2 FTs); Tobey Billups 4 points (2/6 FGs), 3 rebs, 3 asts; Gage Brown 2 points (1/1 FGs); James Williams 2 points (1/1 FGs)
In the second semifinal at New Castle, Cathedral used defensive pressure and a balanced scoring effort to outlast Homestead by a 62-50 score. Murray State signee Jaxon Edwards led the Irish with 15 points, while four teammates added between nine and 14 for Jason Delaney's side. Tayshawn Comer had 14 points to go along with five helpers, and Jaron Tibbs barely missed a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing nine boards off the bench.
The Irish held Fletcher Loyer to just 9-25 from the field, but the Purdue signee still scored 28 points. No other Spartan scored more than seven, as the Irish were simply too long and athletic for any Homestead supporting cast to deal with.
Xavier Booker scored all of his nine points in the first half, while senior forward Jaiden Malachi came up big in the second half, scoring eight of his ten points after the break. The Irish made 7-12 as a team from behind the arc, all while holding Homestead to just 17-48 from the floor.
Homestead will face off against Connersville in the consolation game, while Cathedral will battle Westfield for the Raymond James Hall of Fame Classic crown at 7:45 pm tonight.
Homestead 17 13 14 6 - 50
Cathedral 12 20 15 15 - 62
Homestead: Fletcher Loyer 28 points (9/25 FGs, 2/8 3Ps, 8/12 FTs), 4 rebs; Kyron Kaopuiki 7 points (2/6 FGs, 1/3 3Ps, 2/2 FTs), 2 rebs; Grant Leeper 6 points (3/4 FGs), 7 rebs, 2 stls; Andrew Leeper 5 points (2/8 FGs, 1/2 3Ps), 5 rebs, 2 blks; Grady Swing 3 points (1/1 3Ps); Ifeanyi Ezeakudo 1 point (1/2 FTs)
Cathedral: Jaxon Edwards 15 points (6/10 FGs, 2/2 3Ps, 1/2 FTs), 3 rebs; Tayshawn Comer 14 points (4/10 FGs, 1/3 3Ps, 5/8 FTs), 2 rebs, 5 asts; Jaron Tibbs 11 points (4/6 FGs, 2/2 3Ps, 1/3 FTs), 9 rebs, 2 asts; Jaiden Malachi 10 points (5/7 FGs), 4 rebs; Xavier Booker 9 points (4/5 FGs, 1/1 3Ps), 2 rebs, 2 asts; Jake Davis 3 points (1/4 3Ps), 8 rebs, 2 asts