Taron McGowan’s 25 points leads Plano past Morris

PLANO – Taron McGowan gave Plano a little kick start late in the first half of Friday’s non-conference game at home against Morris.

And he did it with defense along with a fine shooting touch, scoring 25 points to lead the Reapers to a 68-56 victory.

“We play good defense, but when we get steals and make good defensive possessions, it gets the crowd going, gets the bench going,” he said. “It kind of gives everyone else a little kick start.”

McGowan’s three-pointer off a long offensive rebound with 3:16 left in the second quarter gave the Reapers a 29-28 lead.play

It would be the beginning of a 14-0 run where he would play the starring role. He accounted for eight of the points on a couple of 3-pointers and a steal and layup.

“I feel like I got the energy going there for the rest of the guys,” McGowan said. “Usually when we get energy like that a lot of guys pitch in. And when we come together like that it’s hard to stop us.”

Plano (9-7) took that run and the momentum it produced into the second half but Morris came out of halftime inspired.

Morris (7-8) scored seven straight points to get the second half started. Brett Bounds got it going with three free throws, which were also the first of the game, but also a sign of things to come.

The Reapers made 8-of-14 free throws, but the teams canceled each other out as Morris was just 7 of 14. Regardless, the pace of the game changed drastically.

RJ Kennedy split two free throws with 2:22 left in the third quarter to draw Morris to within 45-44. That would be as close as the game would get after six ties and four lead changes in the first half.defensive-minded

“Give our guys credit for the way we battled back on the road in the third quarter,” Morris coach Joe Blumberg said. “We can’t give up 40 in the first half. We have to be more defensive-minded than that. Give them some credit for the way they shot the ball in the second quarter.”

After making 10 three-pointers in the opening half, Morris kept Plano scoreless from beyond the arc in the third quarter.

McGowan finally struck again, draining one from the corner to extend Plano’s lead to 58-47 with 6:13 left in the game.

He’d connect for the sixth time with 3:30 left to make it 66-51 as the Reapers pulled away late.

McGowan also led the Reapers with eight rebounds and had three assists, two steals and two blocks.

Vinny Cesario scored 20 points and had a pair of steals and assists for the Reapers.

“We’ve been playing Morris since freshman year so it was the last time playing them this year so I think everyone knew this game was important,” he said. “Especially (since) we’re not in their conference anymore and I think we really wanted to make a statement and show them that we shouldn’t have moved out and that we can still compete with those teams.”

Gabe Steele chipped in with nine points and Amari Bryant had five assists for the Reapers, who had beaten Morris, 73-68, on the final day of the Plano Christmas Classic on Dec. 28.

Brett Bounds led Morris with 16 points. Jack Wheeler, who scored 33 in that previous match-up, had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. He also had three steals. Ximi Baftiri had nine points.

Plano shot 55% from the field (24-of-44) while Morris was 38% (21-of-56).

“We’re just not making enough winning plays,” Blumberg said. “We’re not taking charges. We’re not diving on the floor for loose balls. We’re not getting a great shot in really critical possessions. We’re not getting the key stop when we need a possession.”