The Taylorville Tornadoes put in one heckuva effort but couldn't get the job done against the speedy Rochester Rockets who used an onslaught of threes and zone defense with heavy full court pressure to defeat the Taylorville Tornadoes 59-46.
A good crowd on hand came to see the game with both sides; visitor and home packed as it felt like a playoff game. Taylorville Head Coach Ryan Brown saying it felt like a home game. He also mentioned that this is the first time that he has coached that both teams have been over .500.
The Tornadoes and Rockets went neck and neck starting out but the Rockets pulled away in the closing moments of the first to jump out to a 20-13 lead. In the second it was much more even with the Rockets controlling the first half of the second and Taylorville controlling the second half. Going into the locker room at halftime, Taylorville trailed 35-25.
The Tornadoes came out hot in the third quarter after some adjustments and really cut the Rockets lead outscoring Rochester 13-9 and heading into the fourth trailing 44-38. The Tornadoes would get within four trailing 44-40 when the Tornadoes missed a few shots and Rochester hit a couple of baskets back to back. The Rockets never looked back outscoring Taylorville 16-8 in the fourth and winning the game.
Coach Ryan Brown said it was important that the team go back and review the fourth quarter and see what happened as Taylorville had their chances. Baron Odam was named the Nicole Patrick Country Financial Player of the game for his gritty defense and 11 points on offense.
Coach Ryan Brown praised the team for their tenacity and heart calling it one of the best games heart wise. He also maintained that while the final score won't look good, he was proud of the effort from his team.
For Rochester, The Gregory's; Khornell, Khordell, and Khorbin proved too tough combining for 26 points. Eli Cox would also have 16.
Point totals for Taylorville:
Baron Odam: 11
Drake Howard: 11
Clark Durbin: 6
Owen Younker: 6
Brock Brown: 6
Malique Pearse: 4
Maddyx Owens: 2
Shey Champley was sick and couldn't make the game. Get well soon Shey! The Tornadoes next face Charleston at home on Friday at 7 PM. The Rockets improve to 15-6 while Taylorville falls to 12-9.
