MADISON TOWNSHIP — Mansfield Senior spread the wealth Friday night.
Freshman Kaylen Brooks led four Tygers in double figures with a career-high 26 points as Senior High cruised to an 85-69 Ohio Cardinal Conference win over crosstown rival Madison.
The Tygers (3-0, 2-0) shot 51 percent from the field and connected on 12-of-26 3-pointers. Senior High had 18 assists on 29 field goals.
“Our guys came ready to play offensively,” Senior High coach Marquis Sykes said. “We’ve got a handful of guys who can shoot the basketball. It makes it difficult to key in on one player.”
Kyevi Roane, Senior High’s high-scoring point-forward, was limited to two first-half points. But Brooks and Rashad Reed Jr. picked up the scoring slack, combining for 22 points in the opening two quarters.
“It’s tough to guard all three of them. They’re like a three-headed monster,” first-year Madison coach Davey Hipp said. “They’re really good offensively.”
The Tygers built a 43-24 halftime lead and pushed the advantage to 70-40 after three periods. Brooks connected on four treys and scored 14 points in the period.
“I try to come out with the same mentality every game,” Brooks said. “I trust the work that I’ve put in.”
A pair of Roane free throws early in the fourth quarter gave Senior High a 72-40 lead before the Rams (1-4, 0-2) made things interesting.
Madison outscored the Tygers 29-15 in the final period and cut the Mansfield Senior advantage to 78-63 with 2:24 to play thanks to six straight free throws by Brady O’Brien. The sequence included a pair of technicals on Mansfield Senior. The Tygers were whistled for four technicals, much to Sykes’ chagrin.
“We’ve absolutely got to be better,” Sykes said. “That stuff is just silly, uncalled-for and uncharacteristic of one of my teams. And they will feel the wrath for sure.
“It’s a rivalry game, but we’ve got to be more composed. Sometimes we’re worried about the wrong things.”
D’Vontae Johnson backed Brooks with 15 points. Reed added 14, while Roane finished with 11 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Colton Adkins led Madison with 19 points. Kaleb Gordon added 16.