Senior standout Luke Kennard scored 52 points to set the Beach Ball Classic’s all-time snigle game scoring record and lead Franklin (OH) to a 96-73 victory over Mullins (SC) at the Myrtle Beach (SC) Convention Center.
Franklin (6-0) trailed briefly in the first half but took the lead for good on an Austin Doliboa layup with 2:59 to play in the opening half. The Wildcats, which led 44-38 at halftime, opened the second half with a 20-6 run that put an end to any question as to which team would advance to the quarterfinal round. The lone questions remaining was if Kennard, who has signed with Duke University, would score enough to unseat Mike Bibby as the Beach Ball Classic’s all-time single game scoring leader.
Kennard, who scored three points shy of Bibby’s record of 48 against Mullins in the first game of the 2013 BBC event, broke the record with a pair of free throws with 1:56 to play. Before Coach Brian Bales could remove Kennard from the game, he connected on a 3-point basket to notch his 52nd point with 1:38 to play. Bibby, who set the record while a senior at Shadow Mountain High School (Phoenix, AZ) against Eau Clair (SC) in the 1995 Beach Ball Classic, is back at the BBC this year as teh head coach of his alma mater.
While Kennard led Franklin, Matt Thompson was pretty impressive as he connected on 7-of-9 from the field, including 6-of-8 from behind the 3-point arc, for 22 points. Kennard also added a game-high 15 rebounds.
Mullins (4-6) was paced by Jalek Felton’s 29 points. Javarius Smith, who connected on 7-of-11 from the field, added 20 points for the Auctioneers.
