Massac, Cairo share title at Tip-Off Classic
DU QUOIN - As it turned out, the first on-site game of the Du Quoin Tip-Off Classic was the unofficial championship.
Although the tournament technically started almost a week earlier when Gallatin County and Carmi-White County played each other, the first game of the first session at Anders Gymnasium last Monday pitted Cairo against Massac County.
Cairo hit nine 3-pointers and won that game, 61-47.
On Saturday, Cairo lost its early game to Gallatin County, but then beat the host Du Quoin, 56-49, in the final game to split the title with Massac County, which beat everybody else.
Massac County earned its share with a 66-56 win over Gallatin County on Saturday night. Earlier in the day, the Patriots made this scenario possible with a win over Carmi.
On Friday, the host Indians rallied from down 13 points twice for a 45-40 victory over Carmi-White County to give themselves a shot at sharing the championship with a win over Cairo.
The Indians got off to a great start with a 10-0 run after the Pilots scored the game's first basket - Braeden Pursell had eight of those points with a putback, free throws, baseline drive and breakaway layup - but Cairo answered with a 12-1 run to finish the first quarter.
Du Quoin finished the first half with a layup by Dasani Edward and a putback from Westly Milam to pull within 24-20, then got even closer when Pursell scored the first bucket of the second half.
Anthony Cole's layup cut Cairo's lead to 25-24 but the Pilots got a 3-pointer from Terrell Jones and never let the Indians pull ahead.
Isaiah Brown's three-point play gave the Pilots a 41-33 lead with 49 seconds left in the third quarter, then Du Quoin's Kadin Mays scored the last points of the third and first of the fourth to bring the Indians within 41-37.
Cairo's next possession was a thing of beauty with several crisp passes from all over the court eventually ending with Jones canning another trey with 6:39 left in the game.
Du Quoin had one charge left as baskets from Pursell and Josh Heape brought it to 46-41 with 4:51 remaining, but that was as close as it got until Mays hit a free throw with 19.3 left to make it 54-49.
Cairo had four players reach double figures, led by Brown with 14 points. Riko Nelson had 11, while Jones and big man Alton Hervey both had 10.
Pursell led Du Quoin with 14 points. Heape, Shamar Adams and Mays all had seven and Cole had six. Milam and Edward both had four.
The Indians went 2-2 in the tournament with wins over Gallatin County and Carmi and losses to Massac and Cairo.
Pursell and Heape represented Du Quoin on the all-tournament team, which also included Brown, Jones and Nelson from Cairo.
Carmi's Ethan Mahon was named the MVP and Carmi's Adam Phelps was given the sportsmanship award. The rest of the all-tourney team included Gallatin County's Audie Goebel, Garrett Rushing and Dawson Hish and Massac County's Julian Russell and Marshon Merriel.
Du Quoin won the cheerleading award.