Article: Franklin 68 Bellbrook 54

[bleacherbum57]

Franklin sophomore phenom Luke Kennard’s 16 point first half proved too much for a plucky Bellbrook Golden Eagle squad trying to defend their home court Friday night. Franklin prevailed 68-54 behind Kennard’s 27 points and a gutsy performance by Travis Lakins, who put up 19 in spite of being visibly hobbled by a twisted ankle he suffered in the first quarter. Also contributing to the Franklin effort were Jeff Pierce with 8, Kraig Hill with 7, and Evan Crowe with 5 points.

Bellbrook refused to fold in the second half, overcoming a 14 point halftime deficit to pull within 7 points in the fourth quarter; but Franklin’s 15 for 18 from the free throw line in the quarter helped seal the win. Bellbrook was led by Doug Rasch’s 23, including 4 treys. Rob Hisey had 11 for the Eagles and sophomore Jackson Jabir, son of UD Women’s coach Jim Jabir, contributed 7. Junior Austin Hall, closely guarded by Kennard, had 5 hard-earned points, and sophomore Josh Rogers contributed 4.

FRANKLIN 15 17 13 23 - 68
BELLBROOK 9 9 13 23 - 54

F: Kennard 27, Lakins 19, Pierce 8, Hill 7, Crowe 5, Stickelman 2
B: Rasch 23, Hisey 11, Jabir 7, Hall 5, Rogers 4, Malapit 2, Phillips 2

3-pt: F - 5 (Kennard 2, Lakins 2, Hill), B - 5 (Rasch 4, Hall)