Cass and Taylor freshman basketball teams battled back and forth in their season opener at Taylor High School. Not until Taylor’s Tyler Koon broke the King’s defense was the first time out called. Cass called the 30 second time out with the cringing score of Taylor’s thirteen and Cass with only five. Resuming the game, Cass’s point guard, Brock Hadley picked up the pace with a steal and drew the foul on Taylor’s number five, Caleb Murdock. Taylor called the next time out, still with the same score, after stalling the clock, unable to find a scoring opportunity. The King’s Austin Mowery drained a three to get the Kings started back into the game. On the opposite end, a rebound by Alec Eurit that was dished to Hadley allowed Hadley to go to the line for the one-and-one, sinking both shots. The Kings pushed the ball after a failed last minute play by Taylor, and Hadley took it to the rack for a quick buzzer beater to score yet another two points. At halftime the score stood 15-12 with Taylor ahead.

            Mowery started off the second half with two rebounds and put backs, adding four points to the board in the King’s favor, now 16-15. The next play the ball was tied up and the Kings got the ball back due to the foul on Taylor. Kylun Scott substituted in to give Mowery a breather. Taylor’s Darius Taper took it to the rack against the Kings. Dalton Frame returned the favor with a nice spin and the bucket was good. Taylor’s Liam Ireland snuck past the Kings for an easy two points under the basket. Mowery and Austin Osborn subbed in for Frame and Hadley. Scott jumped right into action with a rebound and a fast break hit out of bounds by Taylor. Key took the ball out, out letting to the right side of the court only to have the ball reversed back to Key on the left who drained the three. Taylor once again failed to get a last minute open shot, leaving the score twenty-one to twenty-one at the end of the third quarter.

Key started off the fourth and final quarter by drawing a shooting foul; he misses both. Taylor’s Taper made the Kings regret their mistakes by beating their defense with a double pump and a made basket, completing the play with the “and one.”

Frame and Hadley reentered the game for Scott and Eurit along with Matt Titus for Osborn. Key, playing defense, batted the ball out of bounds away from Taylor. Frame stole the ball and drew a shooting foul with a baseline drive. Eurit subbed back in for Key and Key returned to the game for Titus. Frame missed his first free throw and Steve Dishon, Taylor’s freshman coach used that time to call another time out.

Both teams returned to the floor lining up for Frame’s second free throw, which he sunk with ease. Key took it to the hoop for yet another two points putting the Kings 24-23 with just a minute left in the game. Hadley drew a foul on the drive and Taylor, in urgency, called a time out.

Hadley made one free throw bumping the Kings up to a two point lead.  Taylor’s Devin Schesser pulled a three scoring his only three points in the entire game.

Two point two seconds were on the clock and the score was now Taylor with 26 and Cass with only 25, thanks to Schesser. The Kings had to do something, but unfortunately that “something” didn’t happen. The ball was inbounded from Frame to Key who had no time and no choice but to take the long three. The Kings were unable to save the game and the final score was Cass with 25 and Taylor with a crushing 26 points.

After the shaking of hands after the first game, both teams agreed to play another twelve minutes, another half for the players who didn’t get to play much in the game. The King’s won the tip and lost the ball due to the pass that was thrown to the ball handler, Nick Robertson standing in the back court. Osborn subbed for Sharpless and the Kings got the ball back after Taylor got called for a travel. Scott drew the foul on Taylor’s number twelve, Jordan Hemming. Cass struggled to inbound the ball and finally lost it when the ball was fumbled by a forward and hustling Garrett Cain who unable to save it. Taylor’s Caleb Murdock put the first point and only point on the board in the first quarter.

Robertson started the second quarter with a steal and a dish to Nolan Sharpless who drew the foul against Taylor. The Kings inbounded the ball to Brad Berlet who was almost immediately fouled from behind. Taylor’s Jordan Hemming put in two points off of an offensive rebound. Both teams decided to change up their line ups. Cass substituted Osborn and Scott for Berlet and Titus and Taylor took out Murdock and Stephens. Austin Osborn stepped it up for Cass scoring the first and only two points for the Kings. Murdock made his way to the hoop for two points causing Cass’s freshman coaches Chris Smith and Jason Young to call a time out with Taylor’s score of nine and Cass with two and only two minutes and 26 seconds left in the half. Taylor pushed on with a pass to Hemming for two. Sharpless stole the ball out from under Taylor’s noses and went to the line for free throws, missing both. Taylor ended the game by scoring another two points and leaving the final score thirteen to two.