Memphis Briarcrest senior Austin Nichols was almost apologetic after pumping in 42 points in the Saints' 71-58 win over Highland in Pool A play on Wednesday.
"I wasn't meaning to drop (42 points) on them but it happened," he said.
The 6-foot-9 inch Nichols is ranked among the Top 20 high school players in the country by almost every scouting service. He is headed to the University of Memphis after turning down offers from Duke, Virginia, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Auburn.
Nichols was a man among boys on Wednesday. He hit on 19 of 21 shots from the field and recorded 11 slam dunks. He blocked four shots, altered 13 and had a game-high eight rebounds.
Nichols asserted his dominance early with a one-handed slam and a block in the game's first 41 seconds.
After the contest, Nichols patiently signed autographs and posed for pictures with fans for 15 minutes before retreating to the locker room.
"He's a good kid, very humble," Briarcrest coach John Harrington said. "He doesn't like the limelight. Maybe that's why he chose Memphis over Duke."
The tournament record for most points in a game is 51 set by Okawville's Abel Schrader in 1996. That mark could be in jeopardy over the next few days,
Top-seeded Briarcrest Christian (11-3) had to travel seven hours through the snow to reach Breese by the 4 p.m. tip. At times, the team bus had to slow to 35 miles per hour on the highway.
The long trip didn't seem to bother the Saints, who pulled away with a 24-point blitz in the third quarter.
Highland (9-4) led 22-17 after one period and stayed close, trailing 32-29 at the break.
Joe Duncan and Mitch Carriger led the Bulldogs with 14 points each.
Here is a look at the other tournament action that was played Wednesday:
Okawville 44, Highland 41
The Rockets used a 15-6 blitz in the fourth quarter to win their 10th successive contest.
Senior Jeremy Weeke led the way with 16 points and 16 rebounds. Jacob Brammeier also had 16 points.
Okawville, a 1A school with an enrollment of 185, trailed 23-22 at the break.
Carriger paced Highland with a game-high 19 points.
Mascoutah 57, Okawville 54
The 10th-seeded Indians doubled their season victory total in a span of eight hours on Wednesday posting a pair of upsets to move to 2-0 in Pool A play.
Mascoutah (4-7) capped off a perfect day by stunning previously unbeaten and fourth-seeded Okawville (10-1) in late action.
The Indians began the day with a 56-54 overtime win over seventh-seeded Carlyle.
"Great day for us," Mascoutah coach Cody Reynolds said. "I told the kids to enjoy it tonight."
Senior Marshall Moore led the way against Okawville with 14 points. Tim Parks added 11 points and Alex Oltmann chipped in with 10.
Jeremy Weeke had a game-high 21 points and 13 rebounds for the Rockets. Jake Hensler added 13 points.
The Indians went on a 12-9 run over the final 4:32 to claim the upset. Farris Limuel hit a pair of foul shots to break a 45-45 tie and Moore followed with a 3-pointer to put his team up 50-45 with 1:53 remaining.
Mascoutah trailed early before reeling off 14 unanswered points in the second quarter to go in front 21-16. Later in the period, Moore pushed the lead to 27-19 with a slam dunk.
Mascoutah lost seven of its first nine games this season and entered the 10-team tournament with a lowly 2-7 slate.
"I'm extremely proud of our kids," Reynolds said. "Two hard-fought games against two very, very good basketball teams."
Moore triggered the upset of Carlyle with 17 points. Alex King added 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Tyson Boehne led Carlyle (6-3) with 14 points.
Sacred Heart-Griffin 60, Nashville 47
The second-seeded Cyclones scored 39 points in the second half to fend off sixth-seeded Nashville in Pool B action.
Nashville led 38-37 early in the fourth period.
Freshman Royce Newman led the Hornets with 10 points and six rebounds.
Sophomore Ben Sestak paced Griffin with 18 points.
