Trojans drop 4 in Plano Classic

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Posted 1/1/19

PLANO – Mendota dropped all four games it played in the Plano Christmas Classic held Dec. 26-29.

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Trojans drop 4 in Plano Classic

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PLANO – Mendota dropped all four games it played in the Plano Christmas Classic held Dec. 26-29.

Newark 66, Mendota 34

The Trojans started off the tournament with a 66-34 setback to Newark on Dec. 26.

It was a struggle from the start for Mendota as it fell behind 13-6 after the opening stanza. Newark put the game away with a 23-point second quarter compared to just eight points for the Trojans.

Joel Escatel was the lone double figure scorer for Mendota with 12 points. Emiliano Arteaga was next with eight markers. Arteaga led the team with six rebounds, while Joel Figueroa handled five caroms.

The Trojans shot 35 percent from the floor, 50 percent from the free throw line and had 26 rebounds, while Newark hit 36 percent of its field goal tries, 77 percent of its free tosses and grabbed 27 boards. The Norsemen canned nine field goals from beyond the three-point arc. Mendota committed a whopping 28 turnovers compared to just seven for the Newark.

Streator 60, Mendota 23

Mendota had all kinds of trouble finding the bottom of the basket and the result was a 60-23 loss to Streator in the second round of the tournament on Dec. 27.

The Trojans scored only six points in three of the four quarters and five points in the other. Mendota found itself down 18-6 at the end of one period and 29-11 at the break.

Chris Sandoval had six points to top the Trojans, while Eddie Perez and Cole Stremlau each supplied four tallies. Figueroa’s five rebounds paced the squad.

Mendota connected on just 26 percent of its field goal attempts and made 75 percent of its charity throws. Streator shot at a 54 percent clip from the floor and 50 percent from the stripe. The Trojans were outrebounded, 27-17, and committed 24 turnovers compared to 13 for the Bulldogs.

Hinckley-Big Rock 56, Mendota 43

The Trojans saw a halftime lead evaporate in the second half as Hinckley-Big Rock scored a 56-43 win over Mendota in the third round on Dec. 28.

Mendota took a 12-10 first-quarter lead and upped in to 26-20 at intermission. But the Trojans’ offensive woes showed up in the second half as they scored only 17 points compared to 36 for the Royals.

The Trojans converted 53 percent of their shots in the first half, but then made only four of 23 offerings in the second half. Mendota ended the game shooting 33 percent from the floor and 65 percent from the line. Hinckley-Big Rock made 42 percent of its field goal tries and 67 percent of its free tosses. Mendota was beaten on the glass, 32-23, and turned the ball over 17 times, seven more than the Royals.

Arteaga paced the Mendota offense with 12 points, while Perez and Joel Escatel contributed six points apiece. Figueroa hauled down eight rebounds.

Morris 42, Mendota 36

The Trojans waited until the fourth quarter to wake up, but by that time it was too late in a 42-36 defeat at the hands of Morris in the tournament finale on Dec. 29.

Mendota scored a total of 12 points through three quarters and trailed 23-12 heading to the fourth. That’s where the Trojans put a whopping 24 points on the board, but unfortunately Morris tallied 19 to hold on for the win.

Arteaga canned seven three-pointers on his way to 22 points for the Trojans. He and Perez tied for the rebounding lead with four apiece.

Mendota (3-14) shot just 29 percent from the field, 33 percent from the stripe and had 15 rebounds, while Morris hit 48 percent of its field goal tries, 59 percent of its free throws and had 27 boards. The Trojans committed 13 turnovers compared to 27 for the Redskins.