Republic picked up its first win of the season Saturday, topping Hillcrest 58-53 for seventh place at the Republic Invitational Tournament. The short-handed Tigers had dropped their first two games before turning it around against Hillcrest, outscoring the Hornets 28-23 in the second half to pull away after being tied at halftime.
Brenley Hagewood led Republic with 19 points. Aslan Ebisch and Cason Bekemeier were also in double figures with 11 each. Ebisch was 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to help the Tigers secure the win.
The game marked the first of the season for CJ Uhl, who’d been a part of the football roster. He had missed all of last basketball season because of an injury he suffered in football, but he scored two points in his Republic basketball debut. James Rexroat, another of Republic’s inside weapons, will also be joining the squad now that football has ended.
Republic improved to 1-2 this season, and Hillcrest fell to 0-3.
Score by Quarters
Hillcrest 15 15 11 12 – 53
Republic 16 14 13 15 – 58
Individual Scoring
Brenley Hagewood 19, Aslan Ebisch 11, Cason Bekemeier 11, Rylee Tan 6, Jordan Douglas 5, Davin Parks 4, CJ Uhl 2
