By Dan Weber
NKyTribune sports reporter
In one of those rare moments for Thomas More basketball in recent seasons, the No. 1-ranked women took a bit of a backstage to the men’s team in a home doubleheader against Tennessee’s Freed-Hardeman on Senior Day.
For the 16th-ranked TMU men in the second game Saturday, this was a revenge opportunity in a game that will matter when the NAIA bids and seeds come out. Freed-Hardeman, the NAIA’s 22nd-ranked team, had routed the Saints on the road, 88-59, Dec. 15, the first time these teams met this season.
But without starters Noah Pack and Casey George, the Saints fell, 65-57, to the Lions in a battle for second place in the Mid-South Conference where both teams are now 14-6. TMU falls to 20-6 overall, Freed-Hardeman is 18-8 after losing to a Wilberforce team, 83-78, that Thomas More beat twice by a total of 30 points.
And in this game, it looked like TMU was on the way to a win, leading 23-11, after the first 13:04. But the Saints could not hold on, despite shooting 57.1 percent (12 of 21) in the first half before falling off to 33.3 percent (10 of 30) the second half.
TMU got another big offensive game from point guard Jacob Jones, who led the Saints with 17 points. Reid Jolly added 13 points, with Wyatt Vieth adding 11. Kyle Ross and Scotty Draud tied for team-high with six rebounds apiece.
Thomas More was coming off a 76-60 win over Bethel (Tenn.) Thursday in which Jones scored 23 points, Ross 17. But no such scoring, especially in the second half, for TMU.
Next up for the Saints is Shawnee State in an MSC game Thursday at 7:30 at the Connor Convocation Center in the last home game of the season. TMU finishes up at Pikeville Saturday at 3 p.m.
Before the first game, TMU honored four seniors – Zoie Barth of Ft. Thomas and Highlands High School, Courtney Hurst of Burlington and Conner High, Emily Simon of Hilliard, Ohio, and Hilliard Davidson High and Sammi Whiteman of Covington, Ohio, and Covington High.
The game wasn’t much in doubt as TMU romped 79-51 against a Freed-Hardeman team the Saints had beaten earlier in Tennessee to improve their record to 25-1. The Saints return to action Thursday at the Connor Convocation Center when they face Shawnee State in a 5:30 game.
It was indeed Senior Day in this game as Simon led the Saints with a season-high 19 points, 12 of them in the first half, as TMU jumped out to a 34-19 lead at intermission. Barth followed with 18. Simon also led TMU with seven rebounds.
Hitting on their first six shots of the second half, the Saints extended their lead to 50-24 and eventually to 33 points in the third period. Freshman Rylee Turner out of Newport Central Catholic led TMU with a season-high five assists and a team-high three steals.
TMU MEN’S BOX SCORE
FREED-HARDEMAN 27 38—65
THOMAS MORE 32 25—57
FREED-HARDEMAN (18-8, 14-6 MSC): Lax 22, Law 7, Dawson 5, Scurlock 4, Thomas 4, Baugher 12, Wheat 11, Rush 0, TOTAL: 67.
THOMAS MORE (20-6, 14-6 MSC): Jones 17, Jolly 13, Vieth 11, Ross 4, Howard 5, Draud 2, Teten 1, Smith 0, Haubner 0, TOTAL: 57.
TMU WOMEN’S BOX SCORE
FREED-HARDEMAN 7 12 17 15—51
THOMAS MORE 20 14 32 13—79
FREED-HARDEMAN: White 14, Satterly 5, Baugher 2, Chumley 2, Bender 10, Fleming 9, Quick 3, Arms 2, TOTAL: 51.
THOMAS MORE (25-1, 19-1 MSC): Simon 19, Barth 18, Hurst 8, Whiteman 6, Turner 0, Martin 9, Jones 9, Brenner 5, Vickers 3, Lillard 2, TOTAL: 79.