Thijson Heard.GLEN CARBON - Thijson Heard, a senior forward on the boys' basketball team or Metro-East Lutheran, had a big game on Friday, Dec 6, 2024, scoring 39 points, and helping the Knights come back for an 11-point third-quarter deficit to take a Gateway Metro Conference win over Father McGivney Catholic 69-64 at the McGivney gym.

In Metro-East's first two games, both wins over Granite City and McGivney, Heard is averaging 34.5 points, having scored 30 points in the opener against the Warriors and 39 against the Griffins. He's the most important player this season for the Knights, who went to 2-0 with the win, and has some lofty and ambitious goals for the team and himself.

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Heard is a BJ's Printables Male Athlete of the Month for Metro East Lutheran High School.

It was a very good comeback against McGivney, and in his postgame interview, Heard was very happy, indeed.

"I feel good," Heard said. "The first half was a little bit slow, but we knew what we needed to do to come out in the second half, and show why we work so hard in practice."

Metro-East won the game with a "never-say-die attitude" and "team play," Heard said.

"We didn't give up on each other," Heard said. "I took like four shots, but my team was always telling me to keep shooting, and we just played together as a team. That pulled us through to the win."

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In that second half, Heard hit some key baskets, especially down the stretch, to help the Knights take the win,

"That is a good game, 39 is a lot," Heard said. "It came from my teammates, being the ones getting me the ball and allowing me to play my game."

The Knights are off to a good start this season, and Heard knows it's a good feeling.

"We're 2-0," Heard said, "so it's a good feeling to start the season like this."

As far as goals for himself and the Knights, Heard just wants to show the fans and other observers that his team is a hard-working group, and wants to play well all season.

"It's a really good feeling," Heard said of the Friday night win, "especially winning a conference game. I agree, it's a tough conference, and we need to keep working and show why we work so hard."

Once again, Heard gave much credit to his teammates for helping him get the win to open the conference season.

"It wasn't just me," Heard said, "even though I had 39. My team was really important in this game."

More like this:

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Dec 7, 2024 - Heard Leads With 39 Points, Knights Come Back From 11-Point Third Quarter Deficit To Take 69-64 Win At McGivney

Dec 21, 2024 - Junior Brown Sparks Knights to Boys Basketball Victory Over Explorers

Jan 15, 2025 - Play It Again Sports Roundup: Althoff Tops MELHS Boys, McGivney, Cahokia, Jersey Post Wins

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