Troy Boys Basketball Wins 66-57 over Pontiac in District Semifinals

If ever there was a game won from the free throw line, it was the early district semifinal between the Colts and Pontiac Phoenix Wednesday evening at .

The Troy boys basketball team focused its game plan in the second half on one thing – attacking the basket against Pontiac.

“We were too trigger happy in the first half from the perimeter,” Troy coach Gary Fralick said. “We wanted to break them down and take them to the basket, get down low and get him a lot of touches in the second half. It worked out pretty well for us.”

Colts leading scorer James Young helped set the table early in the third by planting himself in the paint. When his guards fed him the ball, he didn’t waste anytime going to the rim.

The only way the Phoenix could slow down the 6-foot, 6-inch forward was to send him to the line.

Young went 6 of 7 from the line in the third to give Troy a commanding 50-39 lead by the end of the quarter. In the second half, the Colts finished 22 of 27 from the line on their way to a 66-57 win.

The victory helped Troy avenge a 58-53 loss to Pontiac in the district semifinals last year. It will be the first time in more than 10 years the Phoenix won’t bring home a district championship.

“We’ve only been in the same district with them three times, and last year they beat us," Fralick said. "I don’t know if it’s a big hump to get over, but its nice to beat Pontiac 'cause I know they are a March Madness type of team. Hopefully, now we can be a March Madness type of team.”

Fralick said his team played a lot better against Pontiac than it did on Monday in a 77-67 win over Waterford Kettering to open districts.

He was particularly pleased with how the Colts handled the Phoenix full court press. Fralick used Young to break the press by having him inbound the ball and cut through the middle of the court.

For most of the second half, Young ran a give-and-go up the floor with his teammates to get the ball across half court with ease.  

Unable to force turnovers, Pontiac struggled to find any kind of rhythm on offense in the second half. Jemarea Samples hit a 3-pointer with 2:37 left to cut Troy’s lead to 60-53, but the Phoenix weren’t able to get within six points.

Young finished with a game-high 23 points. The only other Colts player to hit double digits was Ben Horvath with 12 points; he hit two 3-pointers and was a perfect 6 of 6 from the free throw line. Zach Noor added eight.

The Colts will play Waterford Mott in district finals at 7 p.m. Friday at Troy Athens High School.