Wildcats sink their claws into SWBL title

Lakins’ 19 points vs. Eaton leads Franklin to first crown since 2009.

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By Greg Billing, Staff Writer 1:49 AM Saturday, February 4, 2012

EATON — The Franklin Wildcats won’t say it out loud — their rally cry for the season is “Win The Next One” — but they took a little time Friday night to enjoy clinching the SWBL Southwestern Division title with a 67-46 win at Eaton.

“In the back of your mind you think about league championships, you think about sectional championships ... but from day one we said win the next one,” Franklin coach Brian Bales said.

And this one was nearly put away early.

Franklin senior Travis Lakins had eight points before Eaton scored its first as the Wildcats sprinted to a 14-0 lead in the first four minutes.

Eaton slashed the deficit to 22-16 with 4:30 left in the first half, but the ’Cats — with that up-tempo offense averaging 73 points and their in-your-face defense allowing 42 — quickly restored the lead to double digits.

A 12-3 run to open the second half pushed the lead to an insurmountable 47-26.

“This was a hostile environment against a very good basketball team. ... To come into their gym and get a ‘W’ like we did, I couldn’t be more proud of these guys,” Bales said after his team clinched its first Southwestern Buckeye League title since 2009 (shared with Bellbrook) and first outright title since 1991.

Lakins — as quick with his feet to draw a charge as his hands are to hit a 3-pointer with unconscious range — led Franklin with 19 points. Jacob Rossi added 16, Justin Rossi 12, and the seniors also helped Franklin (16-0, 9-0 SWBL) win the rebounding edge 36-24.

“I’m in the right spot at the right time,” Lakins said of drawing a charge early in the game. “It’s also a team thing. We’ve got to get back on defense and I’m just at the right spot.”

Senior Cole French’s 18 points led the Eagles (8-8, 6-4).

“We fought back and we didn’t give up,” Eaton coach Denny Shepherd said. “But we got frustrated and our shots weren’t falling. That’s what a good team does, frustrates you. We’ve got to make sure we leave this game in the past.”

Franklin, which also beat Eaton 72-52 on Jan. 10, is making sure it doesn’t look too far ahead.

“To win 16 straight and clinch the league championship, our only goal is to win the next one,” Bales said.

“We have a lot left to do.”

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