By JEREMY McGUIRE
Hays Post

TMP 69, Concordia 59

An early second quarter defensive change sparked the TMP Monarchs to their first appearance in the state tournament since 2007.  TMP trailed 21-13 in the early moments of the second quarter when Monarch Head Coach Joe Hertel called off the full court pressure and settled into half-court man to man defense.  TMP quickly went on a 12-4 run to tie the game at 25.  The two teams would trade buckets on a couple of possessions that saw the game knotted up at 29 points apiece

During that run Concordia found themselves in foul trouble as leading scorer Cooper Holmes picked up his third foul and had to sit the rest of the quarter.  The Panthers would get a three pointer to take a 32-29 lead.  That is when TMP took over the game.  The Monarchs finished the second quarter on a 9-0 run to take a 38-32 lead that they would never relinquish.

The third quarter saw Holmes pick up his fourth foul within the first two minutes and he had to sit again.  TMP would again build their lead.  The Monarchs led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter. Concordia was able to convert a close two point basket and hit a buzzer beating three to close the gap to eight points heading to the fourth quarter.

Concordia hit a three right out of the gates in the fourth quarter and you could see the sweat beads building up around the Colby Community Building.  That’s when Monarch point guard Peyton Hoffman put the team on his back out of a timeout.  Hoffman was able to convert an offensive rebound into two points with a putback.  After a Panther turnover he was able to penetrate the lane and float one in to build the lead back to nine.  Concordia ran out of gas and hope at that point and the Monarchs were able to pick up the 69-59 win.

Kameron Schmidt had another stellar night for TMP with 19 points.  Hoffman added 14 and Max Megaffin chipped in with 12.  TMP is now 16-6 on the season and will play on Wednesday at Hartman Arena in Park City.

JOE HERTEL INTERVIEW

HIGHLIGHTS