The Evansville Memorial Tigers came tearing into Tuesday's match with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.3 points) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 52-42 win over Mt. Vernon. Given Evansville Memorial's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana basketball rankings (they are ranked 38th, while Mt. Vernon is ranked 187th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Evansville Memorial's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Luke Ellspermann, who scored 17 points along with six rebounds and two steals. Ellspermann is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last three games he's played. Tucker Tornatta was another key contributor, almost dropping a double-double on nine points and 15 rebounds.
Meyer Robb and Jackson Clowers certainly did their best on Tuesday to avoid the loss. Robb scored 14 points along with two steals, while Clowers scored 14 points.
Mt. Vernon struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Evansville Memorial pulled down 11 offensive rebounds.
Evansville Memorial is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-5 record this season. As for Mt. Vernon, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 10-9.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Evansville Memorial will challenge Owensboro Catholic at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. As for Mt. Vernon, they will head out on the road to face off against Boonville at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Mt. Vernon is facing Boonville at the right time seeing as Boonville is stuck on a three-game losing streak.
