Unlikely SCT final

After everything played out at Montgomery High School on Saturday, fans were left with a very traditional No. 4 Immaculata vs. No. 7 Montgomery Somerset County Tournament final.
It's certainly a breath of fresh air for a tournament which has earned a reputation for sticking to form. Only so many years in a row can the top two seeds meet in the final.
There are those who would argue that it is better to see a matchup of the top two teams during the regular season, but instead you will be getting a matchup of the hottest two teams in the county right now.

Immaculata's Lindsay Melone played a notch above everyone else in the semifinals -- and that's saying something when you consider the caliber of player on the court with and against her -- and almost singlehandedly carried her team into the final. She did get a helping hand from close friend and teammate Caitlin Bay. The leading 3-point shooter in the county drilled two timely fourth-quarter daggers.

Hillsborough's tandem of Kelsey Kutch and Ebony Jones had great days on the boards, combining for 19 rebounds, but neither was a big offensive factor down the stretch. Kutch only attempted one fourth-quarter shot.

Montgomery continues to impress me when I see the team play in person. The ball movement and unselfish play is really something unique. Sophomore point guard Marcia Voigt's range just keeps getting deeper and deeper. There is something going special going on with this team. That feeling of us-against-the-world plus an overwhelming sense of confidence has produced three straight tournament wins. Of course, I've picked against Montgomery in all three of those games. Thankfully, the girls are still talking to me.

Disappointment for Franklin. You could hear it in coach Art Tooles' voice after the game. Tooles has done a fabulous job resurrecting this program during his six years at the helm, but this one had to hurt. It's Franklin's second loss in the semifinals in three years, and the third time Franklin has lost to Montgomery this season. You just can never get an accurate read on this team.