By The Hays Daily News

HILLSBORO -- The Thomas More Prep-Marian boys' basketball team hung with No. 3 seed Holcomb for the first half, but a third-quarter Longhorn surge was too much for the Monarchs.

TMP (3-7) had four players reach double-digit scoring, but still lost 69-57 Monday in the first round of the Trojan Classic.

Holcomb (7-3) led 39-35 at halftime but then went up 52-42 after a third-quarter shooting drought by TMP. The Monarchs made just 2 of 12 field goals in the third. TMP did better in the fourth, making 4 of 14, but so did Holcomb. The Longhorns made 7 of 9 shots and outscored TMP 17-15 in the fourth quarter.

Junior forward Jordan Gottschalk led TMP with 14 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Junior forward Ryan Mayorga added 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds.

Sophomore guard Max Megaffin scored 11, and sophomore forward Cameron Fouts posted 10.

TMP struggled from the field, making 27.5 percent of its shots, but the Monarchs made 22 of 25 free throws as well as forcing 19 Holcomb turnovers to stay in it.

TMP will play Riley County (2-8) at 3 p.m. Thursday in the consolation semifinals.