MJ Mapp scored a game-high 18 points, AJ Saunders bucketed eight of his 13 in the fourth quarter — including 6 of 6 from the free throw line — and the Hornets beat the Edgewood Cougars 48-42 to clinch at least a share of the Southwestern Buckeye League Southwestern title.
Franklin sits at 5-2 in the SWBL Southwestern and hosts Bellbrook next Friday to wrap up conference play and its regular season. Monroe (14-6, 6-2 SWBL Southwestern) is finished with its league slate.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Mapp said. “It’s always been a goal of ours, and to be able to do it this year — my senior year — it’s an unbelievable feeling. I’m so proud of my team, so proud of our coaches that we were able to do this.”
The quest for a conference championship began during the summer for Monroe, which has won three in a row and six of its last seven.
“We started talking about that in June with the kids that we had returning,” said Popplewell, who is in his second season of his second stint at the Hornet helm, “Just felt like we would have a shot compared to the other league.
“You’re not going to do anything I don’t think in life — even in their futures — if you don’t talk about it,” Popplewell added. “That makes them accountable for what they’re saying. We started talking about it in June, and they bought into it. Now, they get to put a number on the wall.
“It’s a great feeling, and it’s something for the kids to always have. They’ll have a piece of that net, and they’ll have that number on the wall when they come in this gym.”
Popplewell, who was the Monroe head coach from 2010-11 through the 2014-15 season and currently teaches at the school, said he took the job again because he had familiarity with the players coming through the system.
“I knew the families. I knew what I was getting with those kids,” Popplewell said. “They’re an awesome bunch.”
Tyson Daley had a team-high 14 points for Edgewood (10-10, 3-4 SWBL Southwestern), while Keegan Sullivan added 13. Miller Fall chipped in with nine points.
“I love my guys. I thought they fought so hard tonight,” Edgewood coach Jason Osterman said. “Just came up a little short. We had some opportunities down the stretch in transition especially. We just didn’t convert.
“Hats off to Monroe. They’ve got a great team,” Osterman added. “They’ve got a lot of seniors on that team. We don’t have a lot of seniors. We have Christian Harley, who wanted this one bad tonight. But we’ve got a lot of dudes coming back that are hungry. We’ll be all right. We will rebound from this.
“Just perspective, we were 4-7 at one point. Now we’re sitting here at 10-10. We’re still happy with where we’re at right now. Not satisfied at all, but we’re happy where we’re at. The growth we’ve made over the season, it’s been fun.”
Edgewood led 6-5 before Monroe scored six straight to take an 11-6 lead. Then the Cougars ran off five consecutive points — including a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Sullivan — to make it an 11-11 ballgame.
The Hornets owned a 22-17 lead at the halftime break and a 33-28 lead heading into the final quarter. Monroe led 33-24 at one point in the third quarter after a Carson Poe layup.
Daley knocked down a trey to bring Edgewood to within 37-35 with two minutes left to play, and he hit another one from long range to pull the Cougars to within 44-41 with under a minute remaining.
The Hornets closed it out before cutting the nets down as conference champions for the first time since the 2006-07 season. They completed the feat in front of a packed home gymnasium.
“I was 1 years old,” Mapp joked. “I didn’t even know about any of this.”
Mapp had two crucial blocks, and a calm Saunders connected on 6 of 6 from the free throw line down the stretch to keep the momentum on Monroe’s side.
“I always want the ball,” Saunders said. “But I know I’ve got a team. I’ve got shooters. I’ve got a big. I really don’t need the ball. But in moments like that, I’m one of the better free throw shooters. I want to take the last shot.
“It just goes back to all the hard work at the beginning of the season. … We set this goal in June, and we made it happen in February.”
Both teams hit the road on Tuesday. Monroe travels to Butler, while Edgewood visits Waynesville.
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