Survive & Advance

West Frankfort head coach Evan Wyllie knows he has one of the best players in the field for the 54th Eldorado Holiday Tournament, he just didn't know it would take his 6-foot-5 junior a little longer to show up.

Johnson, who finished with a game-high 22 points, was quiet in the first half, only netting nine as West Frankfort held 34-30 at halftime.

The junior came alive in the second half, knocking down three 3-pointers and scoring 13 points in helping the No. 6 seeded Redbirds stay out Thursday night's 10 p.m. elimination game.

"He's a threat every time he crosses half court," Anna-Jonesboro head coach Mike Chamness said. "At 6-5, he can handle the ball and has a scorers mentality. He's thinking 'how can I score' everytime he touches the ball. That's hard to guard and you almost have to have someone who can match his length to guard him and someone that is quicker than him and not everyone has that."

Josh Melvin also finished in double figures for the Redbirds, scoring 14 points and Bryson Dorris tacked on 11 points.

Anna-Jonesboro took an early 20-15 lead and pushed the lead to as many as seven points in the second quarter. It was a third quarter run that gave West Frankfort a good enough cushion to hold off the Wildcats.

"The first half was ugly. Defensively, we were not very good and not moving or rotating very well," West Frankfort head coach Evan Wyllie said."

I thought our pressure was okay, we just kept getting beat off the dribble. Melvin had a big game on the boards and Johnson, in my opinion, is the best player in this tournament. He really got going for us in the second half. We made some shots and got some stops. I thought we did a much better job in the second half."

Ethan Culley added eight points for West Frankfort, Cole Levante finished with five points, while Kyle Hammers and Ryley House finished with four points. Andrew Cunningham and Michael Scales both scored two points.

Anna-Jonesboro put three players in double figures, led by 14 points from Blake Pena. Carson Reynolds netted 11 and Tyler Smith tacked on 10 points to finish in double figures.

Noah McFarland scored six points for the Wildcats, while Cameron Tweedy tacked on three points. Zach Overstreet, Ja'Kevon Williford, Nate Belcher and Juan Valencia all had two points.

"I thought in the second half, they made shots and we didn't," Chamness said. "Johnson made some shots and Melvin was a load on the glass and we just didn't have an answer for him. Those two guys killed us. I thought our effort was good, but I thought those two guys were better."

Herrin 76, Carmi-White County 43

Herrin put three players in double figures as the No. 3 seeded Tigers beat Carmi-White County 76-43.

Hayden Holloway had a team-high 21 points for the Tigers, while Brandon Anthony added 17 points and Drew Ringle rung up 15 points.

Jackson Yates added eight points, Garret Venegoni scored seven points and Luke LeQuatte finished with six points. Matthew Brandon had two points for the Tigers.

Ethan Mahone had a game-high 23 points for Carmi-White County and was the lone Bulldog to score in double figures.

Devin Ranken added eight points, while Adam Phelps scored seven points. August Sanders finished with four points, while Luke Simon tossed in a free throw.

Herrin, who led by one 31-30 at halftime, started off the third quarter with four 3-pointers, three of which came from Holloway as the Tigers finished the game with 10 treys.

Carmi-White County returned Thursday night to play in the 10 p.m. game against Anna-Jonesboro. Herrin will play West Frankfort on Friday at 1:45 p.m.

Massac County 50, Hamilton County 39

Massac County, the No. 2 seed in this year's EHT, beat Hamilton County 50-39 in the final morning session of the day Thursday.

The Patriots put two players in double figures as Jase Mizell had a game-high 14 points, while Jullian Russell netted 13 in the win.

Zach Travis and Marshon Merriel each netted nine points, while Hayden Lee finished with four points and JJ Sweatt had a free throw.

Garrett Webb had a team-high 10 points and Robbie Morgan added eight points. Evan Shelton scored seven points and Zach Weaver tossed in six points. Gordon tacked on three points, while Gus Walden and Kaden Richards both had two points. Brandon Peters finished with a free throw.

Massac County now moves on to play the winner of Edwards County and Vienna, while Hamilton County will play the loser Friday.

Edwards County 66, Vienna 54

Cade Schnicker, a 6-foot-2, senior forward for Edwards County scored a game-high 20 points, while three other Lions finished in double figures in a 66-54 win over Vienna Thursday at the EHT.

Justin Wallace netted 15 for ECHS, while Marty Schmittler scored 14 and Andrew Rotramel netted 11 in the win.

Kaden Cowling, Eli Berger and Camden Cowger all had two points for the Lions.

Vienna was led by 10 points from Carter Bishop, while Justin Casey added eight points for the Eagles.

Kyle Vancleve, Matthew Naese, Gabe Snell and Brendan Dahncke all scored seven points for Vienna, while Zane Hutchison scored six points. Jeremy Pietrowski and Ross Lane each threw in a free throw.

Carterville 36, Hardin County 21

Eli Downen had a game-high 17 points and was the lone Lion to finish in double figures as Carterville cruised to a 36-21 win over Hardin County Thursday afternoon.

Luke Stritzel, Austin Garbe, Dylan Moore and Carson Pearson all finished with four points. Tyler Bittle tossed in three points for Carterville.

Fairfield 78, Carrier Mills-Stonefort 16

Landon Zurliene had 16 points for Fairfield, while Reese Lee netted 13 points and Jayzale O'Neal finished with 11 as the No. 1 seeded Fairfield Mules kicked Carrier Mills-Stonefort 78-16 Thursday night.

Luke Dagg and Brian Estes each added eight points for Fairfield, while Tyrese Petty and Collin Massie finished with five points. Cody Cantrell had four points, while Logan Trent tacked on three points. Wyatt Gilbert and Caleb Frymire both had two points, while Kane Hixenbaugh tossed in a free throw.

Carrier Mills-Stonefort got a team-high six points from Colton Mitchell, while Jeremy Choat scored five points. Colton Betz and Aidan Rollins both had two points. Rielly Ward had a free throw.

Spyder Dann covers prep and college sports for the Southern Illinois Local Media News Group. Follow him on Twitter: @spydieshooter.