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Franklin Monroe sophomore Ethan Conley was a man among boys Tuesday at
Ansonia. Conley
dropped in 29 points and grabbed 14 rebounds as the
Jets rolled to 65-50 win over the Tigers in
Cross County Conference
action. CNO Photo by Danny Stockton, stocktonstudio.com
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Conley has
career type night against Ansonia
By George Starks
ANSONIA- If Franklin Monroe sophomore Ethan Conley was looking to get a
part in a play as Paul Bunyon, he gave a great audition Tuesday At
Ansonia.
Like Bunyon chopping down trees, Conley chopped down the competition.
The high flying Jet dumped in 29 points (18 in the first half) as
Franklin Monroe posted a 63-50 Cross County Conference victory over
Ansonia Tuesday.
"If he didn't play tonight, we probably lose by fifteen," said Franklin
Monroe coach Troy Myers. "It wasn't just because of the points he
scored but because of the energy he brought to the team. He was
crashing the boards (14 rebounds). He is a very versatile player
and I love this kid. He's very unselfish and will always ask if he can
go one on one with his defender. He's the best player on the floor. He
was creating a lot of opportunities for himself in the first half
because he has the ability to do that even when he's not getting the
looks."
Ansonia led by double digits most of the night but with just over five
minutes remaining in the game, that lead had been trimmed to a 53-48
count when Braden Swabb hit a trey.
"This is a well coached team and no lead is safe against a team like
Ansonia," said Myers. "Chad (Cramer) does a tremendous job and they
never went away.."
According to Myers, the Jets problems started early.
"We put ourselves beging the eight ball early because we didn't guard
like we wanted to guard and that drives me nuts. When we don't guard
one on one, they kick the ball out and they have shooters so they
shoot. I bailed us out by going to the zone and I don't like doing
that. We did enough to win but they (Ansonia) were doing so many
different things and making adjustments. I give them a lot of credit
because they were knocking down shots and fortunately,very were able to
hold off their runs late in the game."
Holding a 15-12 lead after one, Franklin Monroe opened up a 21-12
advantage with 6:26 left of the first half clock.
By the end of the half, the Jets were up 35-25 as Conley had hit his
scoring average of 18.
With Tri-Village looming in the shadows Friday night at The Hangar,
Myers has a short turnaround to prepare for the Patriots.
"We have a lot of things to correct before Friday," said Myers. "I
don't know what was wrong with us tonight but it wasn't good. We know
what coming on Friday and we have to be ready for them."
Trailing by three in the first, Cramer called it for what it was.
"Both teams were were getting up and down the floor and there was s lot
of action out there," said Cramer. "This was not a great defensive
game. Conley I a terrific player. He had a whale of a game and he made
it tough for us to deal with. They're a good team. They play well
together."
Cramer was quick to point out the flaws by his team.
"I think we took a lot of bad shots in the first half," admitted
Cramer. "We had a lot of good looks, especially with the threes (11 on
the night) but when you live by the three, you die with it."
With the win, FM goes to 4-1 on the year while the Tigers drop to 4-2
overall and will play at Bradford Friday in another CCC contest.
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