The Tigers started the season off greatly after a major win over the Collinsville Kahoks. Collinsville, a 4A team, posed a threat to the Tigers considering their school size, home-court advantage, and physical capability. Despite these odds, the Tigers brought home the win in overtime 61-59.
Starting the season off right for the Tigers were Chance Estes (12), Madox Billingsley (12), Kyrese Lukens (12), Grady Cox (12) and Jaxton Faulkenberry (10). The Tigers led after the first quarter with a score of 17-15. They continued to lead throughout the second and third quarters with scores of 27-22 and 43-41 respectively. The Tigers and the Kahoks remained tied following the fourth 54-54, sending them into overtime.
Collinsville then scored 5 points in overtime, but the Tigers secured the win when Lukens went to the line to shoot free throws, advancing his team 6 points in overtime. The final score was 61-54.
(Photography, Emmarie Bires)
On Monday, Dec. 2, the boys basketball team headed into their second game of the season, which was their first game of the DuQuoin Tip-Off. Herrin was placed in Pool B along with Sparta, Sesser and Carmi, while Pool A held Murphysboro, Cairo, Chester and DuQuoin. For the Tigers’ first game, they faced Sesser-Valier. Quarter one had Sesser-Valier on top with 19, and they went on to continue their lead throughout the second quarter (29-24). Herrin then turned to outscore Sesser-Valier in the third quarter to lead 44-40.
The Tigers would go on to take home their first win of the tournament after scoring 64 points and the Red Devils fell with only 51 points. Kyrese Lukens was the leading scorer with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. Madox Billingsley, a returning player, is already proving to be a key starter with 16 points and 3 steals.
(Photography, Emmarie Bires)
The second game of the tournament took a different direction. Going into the game Tuesday night, the Tigers were favored, but all knew Sparta posed a threat. Sparta had faced Carmi the previous night. Carmi’s top player Mitchel Edwards had broken their all-time scoring record in a single game with 47 points. But the Bulldogs still fell to Sparta (65-74).
This proved that Sparta could still prove themselves offensively even if they let some things slide defensively. The Tigers went neck and neck with the Sparta bulldogs and even led at the end of the first quarter 18-13. Herrin continued their lead 31-28 at the end of the second quarter and remained on top 39-37 closing out the third, but fell to the Bulldogs 46-48. Grady Cox had a good game with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Lukens followed with 10 points, 5 assists and 2 steals.
On Friday, Dec. 6, the Tigers headed into their matchup with the Carmi Bulldogs, a team Herrin plays annually with during both the DuQuoin Tip-Off and the Eldorado Holiday Tournament (EHT).
Herrin slipped past Carmi last season by 1 point to head into the championship game of the EHT. The starting lineup also saw a change this game with the addition of Senior Jared Staple. Jared, a transfer from Marion, is showing to be a great addition to the team after being the second-highest scorer in this game with 11 points. Staple stated, “I’m excited to come to Herrin. I think I bring an energy to the team and I put in a lot of effort to be here. I think this season will be one to remember.”
Herrin led 11-8 at the end of the first quarter, 25-22 at the end of the second and 46-37 at the end of the third quarter. The Tigers proved themselves to be the better team on the court with a final score of 56-51.
On Dec. 7, the Tigers faced the Chester Yellowjackets for the third-place game. Herrin scored 12 points in the first quarter, while Chester scored seven. Herrin advanced their lead to 26-10 in the second quarter and continued their lead into the third quarter 33-18. In the final quarter, the Tigers scored 18 points and Chester scored eleven. The Tigers claimed third place in the tournament after their 51-29 win over Chester.
Kyrese Lukens and Grady Cox both were named to the All-Tournament team. The Tigers head into their first conference game on Dec. 13, where they play the Carterville Lions at Carterville. The basketball team will also play their first home game on Dec. 17 against Carbondale. Head Coach Sayler Shurtz stated, “Looking forward to seeing the team gel together and having everyone back, these guys haven’t played a lot together, and every practice and game is much needed experience going forward.”
