First time seeing Franklin Central this year, but you can expect Mark James teams to play together, play defense, and play with a very high basketball IQ. This was my first look at Pike in regular season action as well. I was at their scrimmage, but not a regular season game.
Pike jumped all over Franklin Central to start the game. It looked like it might be a blow out like the first game of the night. Zavier Turner came out of the gates on fire and had 10 first quarter points. Turner hit a shot at the buzzer to give Pike an 18-8 advantage after the first quarter.
Franklin Central did not play very well in the first half. They took some rushed shots and some uncharacteristic shot selection as a whole. They didn't play like most Franklin Central teams do. Pike was in full control at halftime 31-15 behind Turner's 10 points, Marquis Teague's 7 points, and R.J. Hunter's 6 points.
The third quarter is when Franklin Central started to play like you would expect them to. They were taking better shots, they were playing better defense, and were knocking down open shots. That is what allowed them to get back into the game. One steady contributor throughout the game for the Flashes was John Goodlow. Goodlow was a major factor on the backboards especially the offensive glass. After three quarters, it was Pike 46 and Franklin Central 34.
The final quarter was a quarter of multiple small runs by each team. First it seemed like Franklin Central was going to make it a game and pull within 3. Then Pike would push the gap back to 10. Franklin Central would then answer that run and get it back to 3 or 4 points. This is the way the whole fourth quarter went. Senior Kyle James was big for FC in the fourth. Not to be out done though, Marquis Teague scored 11 of his game-high 24 points in the quarter. Pike made just enough plays to hold on for a 63-53 W.
{iACL type=!userid 1,62,91,110,187,64,171,166,122,802,391,162,475,1084,1207,171,1293,1307,167,92,169,362,157,63, 64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,76,77,79,80,82,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,96,97,98,99,1383,1384,163,1410,1411,1414,1415,1416,1417,1418,1419,1420,1421,1422,1423,1424,1425,1426,1427,1428,1429,1430,1431,1432,1433,1434,1435,1436,1437,1438,1439,1440,1441,1442,1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025}You must be a subscriber to read the rest of the article...click here to sign-up {/iACL} {iACL type=userid 1,62,91,110,187,64,171,166,122,802,391,162,475,1084,1207,171,1293,1307,167,92,169,362,157,63, 64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,76,77,79,80,82,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,96,97,98,99,1383,1384,163,1410,1411,1414,1415,1416,1417,1418,1419,1420,1421,1422,1423,1424,1425,1426,1427,1428,1429,1430,1431,1432,1433,1434,1435,1436,1437,1438,1439,1440,1441,1442,1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025}
Marquis Teague 6'2 PG 2011 Pike
Teague has been playing more within the team this year. His attitude isn't always the best, but he is playing harder and more consistently than he has in years past. He is more willing to pass up a shot to get a teammate an easy look this year. I wish he would use his great athleticism to create more havoc on the defensive end, but we can't be too greedy...one step at a time. If he buys into a defensive philosophy, he could be a great defender at the next lever.
R.J. Hunter 6'5 SG 2012 Pike
I'm still amazed at how much Hunter has improved in the last year-to-date. He is more active in every phase of the game. He uses his unreal length to deflect passes, block shots, and rebound. Hunter is also expanding his dribble drive game more and more. If he could add some muscle, he would be in the HM/HM- category. It will definitely be hard to put on muscle since he is so thin right now.
Zavier Turner 5'8 PG 2013 Pike
Height is always going to be a factor for Turner. I think he is done growing as he hasn't grown in the year+ that I have been watching him play. He is quick and explosive, but he has to be elite level quick to make up for his height. He's going to have to be super steady with the ball and lights out shooter when open to play D1 at his height. He is a good shooter right now and is good with the ball but both must continue to improve. Right now, I project him as a LM prospect.
John Goodlow 6'2 SF 2011 Franklin Central
Goodlow was very good in this game. He rebounded on both ends and was active defensively. Offensively, he got most of his points off of put backs but also showed that he could put the ball on the floor and get to the rim. He's a bit of a tweener between SF/PF right now. He could be a good pickup for some NAIA/D3 programs.
Kyle James 6'0 PG 2011 Franklin Central
Steady, coach's son point guard that can hit the open shot and understands how to get past defenders that are quicker than he is. James is a NAIA/D3 prospect.
Warren Gordon 5'9 PG 2012 Pike
Gordon is probably more of a combo guard than a pure point guard. I saw him play in a fall showcase and really liked what he did that day. It's hard for him to get playing time with the good guards at Pike. Gordon can really shoot the ball from the outside and he has some quickness to him. He could be a player that NAIA/D3 programs look at next year.
{/iACL}