Basketball: John Curtis, St. Aug, Rummel boys; Ben Franklin girls win

Area Prep Basketball Report for Wednesday, Jan. 25

While many games were cancelled due to the weather event in south Louisiana, a few key games were played Tuesday, notably in District 7-5A.

John Curtis Christian kept pace with St. Augustine at the top of Catholic League play Tuesday evening, holding off Jesuit 47-43 at Tom and Gayle Benson Arena.

The Blue Jays jumped out to a 12-10 lead after one quarter but the Patriots dominated the second quarter and took a 28-16 halftime lead. Curtis maintained a 37-28 lead after three quarters and held off a Jesuit rally in the fourth quarter for the victory.

Leading 45-43 with 7.4 seconds remaining, Michael Turner sank two clutch free throws to seal the win for John Curtis.

The Patriots came up big at the free throw line, sinking 10 of 11 attempts.

Freshman Midnight Martin led a balanced attack with 11 points while Michael Turner had 10 points. Freshman Autrail Manning scored nine points and Mark Johnson finished with seven points.

Will Sheridan led the way for Jesuit with 16 points, Jack Lo had 10 points and Brock Gullish finished with eight points.

John Curtis (19-4, 5-1) returns to district play Friday night at Holy Cross.

The Blue Jays (16-8, 2-4) will host Karr on Friday night.

St. Augustine remained even at the top of the league with Curtis, downing Holy Cross 61-56 at St. Mary’s Academy.

Turner Duncan led the way for the Purple Knights with 21 points while Cy Merrett scored 19 points.

The Purple Knights (14-11, 5-1) are the hottest team in the league, winners of six straight games. St. Aug will host Brother Martin Friday night while the Tigers (17-5, 2-4) will host Curtis Friday.

Karr played at Archbishop Rummel and the Raiders won a 51-50 thriller.

The Raiders started on fire, jumping out to 24-12 lead after one quarter before the Cougars cut the deficit to 32-27 by halftime. Karr tied the game 42-42 going to the fourth quarter.

Rummel led by six in the final frame and held on for the win as Karr hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it a one-point game.

Ja’Mard Jones led the Raiders with 15 points and seven rebounds while Chase Marino had 13 points. TJ Duhe had eight points, four assists and three steals and Denim Smith added seven points, including a pair of 3-pointers.

Rummel outscored Karr 16-8 from the free throw line, negating a 30-23 rebound advantage for the Cougars. Each team committed 15 turnovers.

Rummel (16-8, 3-3) will return to action at home Saturday at 7 p.m. against Tara in a non-district contest.

Karr (10-14, 2-4) returns to district play at Jesuit Friday night at 7 p.m.

In girls action, Ben Franklin downed Douglass 63-52 to remain unbeaten in District 11-4A.

The Lady Falcons used a balanced attack to get the job done.

Petra Trumbach led the Lady Falcons with 20 points and 10 rebounds, Alivia Benetrix had 13 points, eight rebounds and four assists, Allison Honeywood scored 13 points and pulled down eight rebounds, Kate Jackson had 13 points and four rebounds and Cyd Gauff finished with 10 points, six rebounds and four steals.

Ben Franklin (22-5, 4-0) returns to district play Monday at Abramson at 5 p.m. The Bobcats (14-10, 2-2) return to district play Thursday at Carver at 5 p.m.

Area Prep Basketball Results from Tuesday, Jan. 24

Boys
Archbishop Rummel 51, Karr 50
Crescent City Christian 68, Riverside Academy 50
John Curtis Christian 47, Jesuit 43
St. Augustine 61, Holy Cross 56
St. Thomas Aquinas 77, Pope John Paul II 60

Girls
Ben Franklin 63, Douglass 52
St. Thomas Aquinas 59, Pope John Paul II 34