MANDEVILLE — Franklinton went 0-3 in the Titans Thanksgiving Classic at Lakeshore that was held the first three days of Thanksgiving Week.
The Demons hung in early on against a tough Sophie B. Wright team in the opener, but the Warriors opened things up before halftime, extended the lead in the third quarter before the Demons made a comeback, but fell short in a 60-45 loss on Nov. 20.
The game was tied, 4-4, at the 5:07 mark of the first quarter. Sophie B. Wright then went on a 9-0 run with Charles Russell Jr. making a steal and then scoring the bucket to break the tie. Brian Walker knocked down a 3-pointer, Damiree Burns pulled down an offensive rebound and hit the put back and Burns scored two more on a dunk to make it a 13-4 game with 2:53 on the clock.
Raisean Hart, who posted 10 points including a 3-pointer, knocked down a three and it was a 13-7 game.
The Warriors were up 15-7 after one.
Sophie B. Wright extended the lead to 29-11 with 2:19 left in the first half and took a 33-18 lead to the second half.
The Warriors outscored Franklinton 15-9 in the third quarter and were up 48-27 heading into the final period.
The Demons made a 14-2 run in the fourth quarter and got back into the game.
It started 19 seconds into the period when T.Y. Pope dunked. Trequan Charles hit a pair of free throws and Hart went 1-of-2. It was 48-32 with 7:06 left.
Pope knocked down a jumper from the baseline and Lagarian Bell was good for two, trimming the lead to 48-36 with 5:43 to go.
Sophie B. Wright’s Gregory Hammond Jr. made a layup 13 seconds later to stop the run momentarily, but Pope nailed a three and then took a pass from Hart and hit the ensuing shot.
Franklinton, who trailed by as many as 24, was down by just nine at 50-41 with 4:43 left.
The teams traded buckets and then Sophie B. Wright pushed the lead back to 15 at 58-43 and won by that margin at 60-45.
“Before the game, I knew we would have to board as a team,” Franklinton coach Brad Oestriecher said. “They’re bigger than us at all five positions, so I knew rebounding was going to be key and we were unable to get it and we didn’t play with any energy until the middle of the third quarter.”
Oestriecher said he was very proud of the way his team fought in the fourth quarter.
“The way we played in the fourth quarter is the way we can play and the potential that we do have, so we’ve just got to get better.” Oestriecher said.
Pope led all scorers with 28 points, which included two 3-pointers.
Charles, Conerly and Bell all tallied two while Avant Monie added one.
Burns was Sophie B. Wright’s leading scorer with 17 points that included a three.
Russell posted 14 points, Hammond had 12 and Walker recorded 11. Walker hit three 3-pointers while Russell and Hammond hit two each.
Torrence Jackson totaled four points while Rashaun Vance added two for Sophie B. Wright.
Franklinton’s final two games were close losses.
The Demons’ second game of the event was a 61-56 setback to East St. John.
Pope led the way with 23 points, which included two 3-pointers.
Hart put up 12 points and he hit a 3-pointer.
Joshua Boughton tallied nine points on a trio of 3-pointers, while Kian Conerly and Lagarian Bell recorded six points each.
The Demons final game of the tournament was a 56-54 loss to Roosevelt out of Dallas.
Pope once again led the Demons, this time with 29 points and he hit two 3-pointers.
Hart posted nine points and hit a 3-pointer, while Conerly hit a 3-pointer as part of his eight points, Boughton posted four, Lorenzo Hart had three and Bell added one.