In a Saturday night game in which the Eagles never trailed, the visiting Clintonville Truckers did not go away quietly.   At the end of the evening, it was Coach Josh Vandenbush and the Southern Door Eagles that would cut down the nets after a thrilling 54-49 victory, in front of their home fans, for just the 2nd time after reaching the Regional Final game in 9 of the last 11 seasons.  The last time the Eagles claimed the Regional title was in 2018.

 

The Eagles would jump out to a large lead in the first half but would hold just a 26-21 halftime lead, thanks to the sharpshooting efforts by the Trucks who hit 6 three-pointers in the opening half. Drew Daoust had better success scoring in the first half Friday night and led all scorers in the half with 14.  

 

Southern Door would open the second half with a 16-6 run, which included 2 three-pointers by Caden Pierre, to jump ahead 42-27. However, this could not quite put the Truckers away and the Truckers had at one point had it down to a single possession game.  The Eagles had their struggles at the free throw line in the second half going just 5-13 from the line in the half, but partially thanks to the 15 second-half points by Drew Daoust, the Eagles survive and claim the title.

 

Leading scorers for the Eagles were Daoust (29), Caden Pierre (8) and Tyler Neinas (8).

The Eagles' next game will be on the road where they are scheduled to take on Freedom Thursday March 7th at a neutral site in the Sectional Semifinals.  We will carry that broadcast again with pregame going live at 6:40 pm, and a 7:00 pm tipoff on 96.7 WBDK and NewRadioSportsNetwork.