The Mount Pleasant Tigers traveled to Franklin over the Christmas holidays to compete in the Franklin Christmas Invitational Dec 27-29 and came away with three wins and a fifth-place finish over the three days. The Tigers were originally scheduled to travel to Louisiana for a tournament, but scheduling conflicts did not allow that trip to happen. To make matters more challenging, several players and head coach Joey Chism had to stay behind due to health and safety protocols. But the Tigers represented Mount Pleasant well with many role players getting heavy minutes and gaining invaluable experience.

Mount Pleasant 54
Rudder High School 51

Mount Pleasant opened the tournament facing one of the most athletic teams in the field in 5A Bryan Rudder. A slow start found the Tigers down 18-8 at the end of the first quarter but Mount Pleasant shook off the Christmas rust and knotted the score at 27 heading into the half. A back and forth third quarter saw Rudder take a two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, 41-39. After going down six points to start the final frame, the Tigers would use a 12-2 run to take the lead and hold on for the win. Freshman Reggie Webster poured in a team-high 19 points including 5-of-6 from behind the arc and 4 steals. Will Hills also performed well with 15 points and 8 rebounds and Kelcey Morris had his first double-double of his career with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Other scorers were Elijah Morris 5 points and Kai Price 3 points.

Mount Pleasant 51
Waco Connally 57

Game two would not be so kind to the Tigers as they matched with a feist Connally team that plays a very similar style to the Tigers. Connally’s physical style of play tested the Tigers endurance, and the Tigers were not able to overcome their relentless play. The Tigers opened the scoring to take a 2-0 lead but would never see the lead again as they played catch up the entire game. Connally led 15-12 after one quarter and 38-31 at half time. The Tigers would get within two points, 38-36, midway through the third quarter but that would be as close as they would get. Kelcey Morris led the Tigers with 16 points and 7 rebounds. Will Hills chipped in 13 points and 6 rebounds and Reggie Webster added 12 points. Also scoring was Elijah Morris 8 points and Xavier Hills 2 points.

Mount Pleasant 50
Navasota 47

The Tigers got back on track in the second game on Tuesday taking a nice win over Navasota. Mount Pleasant opened the game with a 15-11 first quarter and pushed the lead to 32-24 at the half. Navasota would make things interesting in the second half, but Mount Pleasant would hold them off, never relinquishing the lead. Elijah Morris put up a game-high 15 points with three makes from deep and 4 rebounds. Reggie Webster managed lots of double teams to put up 11 points and grab 6 rebounds. Kelcey Morris finished in double figures as well with 10 points along with 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Also scoring was Will Hill 9 points, Jordyn Hurndon 3 points, and Ervin Mickens and Xavier Hills with 1 point each.

Mount Pleasant 49
Franklin 29

The Tigers may have saved their best defense for last as they matched up with host, Franklin, to close out the tournament. The Tiger defense stifled the Lions to a mere 26% from the field and forced 25 turnovers. Franklin actually led 8-7 at the end of the first quarter mainly due to poor shooting on the Tigers’ part but Mount Pleasant flipped the script in the second quarter to take a 31-18 lead at the half. It was more Tigers in the second half as the defense held Franklin to only 11 points to take the victory. Reggie Webster led all scorers with 15 points, adding 9 rebounds and 3 steals. Kelcey Morris added 7 points and 7 steals along with Xavier Hills’ 7 points. Will HIlls (10 rebounds) and Elijah Morris both chipped in 6 points and Ervin Mickens added 4 points. Kyler Smith and Jordyn Hurndon put up 2 points apiece.

For their efforts and leadership, Kelcey Morris and Reggie Webster were both selected All-Tournament Team. Webster led the Tigers in scoring with 14.3 points per game, shooting 44% from behind the arc and 82% at the line. Morris rarely stepped off the floor, setting the pace, and finishing second on the team in scoring and rebounding at 11.3 points per game and 7.8 boards per game. He also led the team in assists (4.3) and steals (4.3) per game.

The Tigers (12-6, 1-0)will get some rest and rev up to resume district play this Friday versus Texas High at home. Game times are set for 5:00 PM, 6:15 PM, and 7:30 PM and tickets can be purchased online at www.mpisd.net/athletic-tickets. The game will also be live streamed on the Mount Pleasant Tiger Basketball YouTube channel.

Photo by Drew Barkley
Freshman guard Reggie Webster (L) and junior guard Kelcey Morris (R) pose with their all-tournament trophies.