Photo by Kim North Monroe Central’s Tucker Howell (22) pulls down an offensive rebound during Friday night’s Ohio Division VI Eastern District co-sectional final victory over Crooksville on Junior Winland Court.

WOODSFIELD — Monroe Central got off to a slow start in its Ohio Division VI postseason debut Friday night, but once the Seminoles turned up the heat it was too much for No. 9 Crooksville to handle in a 73-33 Eastern District co-sectional final rout before a standing-room-only crowd around Junior Winland Court.

Following a sluggish first quarter in which Cooper Howell’s driving layup beat the buzzer for a 16-14 lead by the hosts, second-seeded Monroe Central relied on its pressure defense to jump-start its offense.

The in-your-face defense forced five turnovers by the Ceramics that led to numerous fast-break points and a 24-6 scoring advantage that bumped the margin to double, 40-20, at the half.

“We had a slow start but you’ve got to credit Crooksville for that. They came out with a lot of energy, but once we figured some things out, we took over from there,” second-year Monroe Central head coach Mason Lang said.

After Konlan McIntyre gave Crooksville (7-16) a 17-16 edge to start the second quarter, Monroe Central used a pair of 11-0 runs to take control as the Ceramics started to crack.

“I think what really turned the game was when we turned up the pressure defensively and started forcing some turnovers,” Lang noted. “We were able to get out and run and that got us in a rhythm. We just kept playing from there.”

Monroe Central senior do-everything Tucker Howell was the instigator on defense. His quick hands deflected several passes that the Seminoles turned into easy baskets.

He had eight of his game-best 21 points in the period while also charting four steals and two assists in the same span. He completed his double-double with 10 rebounds.

Howell was joined in double digits by teammates Chase Allen with 12, while Cooper Howell and Caedyn Silva evenly divided 22. The younger Howell collected seven rebounds, one more than Allen as the Seminoles enjoyed a commanding, 43-13, advantage off the glass.

Tucker Howell also tallied eight third-quarter lightings as the advantage increased to 60-27 at the end of three as Crooksville went 3-for-13 from the floor.

When Jacob Fogle buried a bonus bomb from the right corner to make it 59-24, the OHSAA 35-point mercy rule kicked into effect and the clock ran the entire fourth quarter.

Monroe Central shot 55 percent (26-47) from the floor but struggled at the foul line where it tickled the twine just 14 of 25 times.

“We’ve got to be able to make foul shots in the clutch down the road,” Lang insisted.

The Seminoles had nine turnovers, five less than the Ceramics.

With the lop-sided victory, Monroe Central will face No. 3 Malvern, who defeated No. 7 Fort Frye, 60-41 also on Friday night, in the Eastern District semifinals. That game will be played on Tuesday night at a site to be determined by OHSAA officials. It will tip at 7.

The Seminoles advanced to the Division IV Eastern District Championship Game last winter before falling to Hiland. The top-seeded Hawks meet No. 4 Caldwell in the other semifinal on Tuesday.