Republic mixed defensive grit with patient offense Tuesday night, slowing down Glendale’s high-octane attack and grinding out a 68-56 win. The Tigers held the Falcons 14 points below their season scoring average while Brenley Hagewood poured in 33 points to lead all scorers.
Republic’s defense set the tone early, holding a Glendale offense that had been averaging 70 points to just nine in the opening period. The Tigers led 14-9 after one quarter and never trailed.
When Glendale forward Mar’Kel Houston got in early foul trouble, Republic took advantage inside with CJ Uhl, who scored 11 of his 16 points in the first half.
“Any time we feel like we have a mismatch with him, that’s what we’d like to do. And it felt like we had an even bigger mismatch once they got in foul trouble,” said Republic coach Tim Brown. “That was our game plan coming in. I think it worked.”
In the second half, Republic adjusted its offensive sets to create different opportunities for Hagewood, who responded with a big third quarter as Republic outscored Glendale 25-20. Keiran Govan ran the offense from the point and helped get the rest of the offense involved. Brody Blades and Ryder Davis each had two three-pointers in the second half as Republic built its lead.
“We ran a lot of sets in the third quarter. We felt like we could get us in those actions and get baskets out of those,” Brown said. “Being in front of our bench, we always feel like we’re a little bit better in the second half whenever we’re there to help them.”
Hagewood made just one three-pointer in his big third quarter. The rest of his points were on mid-range shots or drives around defenders that resulted in layups, fouls, or both.
Joelle Rover led Glendale with 15 points.
The win improves Republic’s record to 16-3. Glendale falls to 9-7.
Score by Quarters
Glendale 9-9-20-18-56
Republic 14-13-25-16-68
Glendale Scoring
Joelle Rover 17, Sylijah Davis 3, Anthony Fletcher 11, Mar’Kel Houston 6, Elias Stainback 6, Jacan Seats 11, Jarell Blakey 2
Republic Scoring
Brenley Hagewood 33, CJ Uhl 16, Brody Blades 9, Ryder Davis 6, Keiran Govan 4
