LEXINGTON – There will be a new boys’ basketball state champion in Kentucky.
Scott County cruised out to a lead over the first three quarters of a rematch of the 2018 state championship game, before holding off a furious Covington Catholic rally to come away with a 64-61 win in a Whitaker Bank/KHSAA Sweet Sixteen first round game on Thursday.
“They started pressing and Diablo [Stewart] had fouled out. Diablo had four fouls, so we had to use him sparingly and then he got his fifth foul. He’s our primary ball handler. Mike [Moreno] had four fouls on him, so Mike sat a lot in the fourth quarter. Mike’s our guy in the middle – our best passer against the press – so it was tough beating their press and they were long,” said Scott County coach Billy Hicks. “They did a really good job of trapping. You’ve got to understand, our best ball handler and our best passer wasn’t on the floor.”
The Cardinals held Covington Catholic to just 24 points over the first three quarters to hold a 17-point lead heading into the fourth after a Glenn Covington 3-pointer at the third quarter horn.
Stewart fouled out with 2:45 remaining and Mr. Basketball finalist Moreno was limited in the second half after picking up his fourth foul with 3:30 to play in the third.
The Cardinals held a 19-point lead with 1:34 remaining, before the Colonels went on an 18-0 run, cutting the Scott County lead to one at 60-59 with 23 seconds remaining.
“I couldn’t be prouder of these guys, what they’ve been through all year long – winning the state last year – and the expectations, they don’t change. We lose seven seniors, five starters. Guess what? We’re right back in it,” said Covington Catholic coach Scott Ruthsatz. “That’s just the expectation. These guys know it. That’s how they train all year. That’s how they practice. Sometimes you just come up a little short.”
A layup from Lorenzo Williams ended the stretch for Scott County and got the Cardinals back ahead by three, but Grant Disken made two free throws with three seconds left to cut the deficit to one. Covington Catholic fouled Covington, who hit both free throws, before a game-tying 3-point heave from Joseph Moser missed the mark and Scott County escaped with the 64-61 win.
Covington finished with 15 points for Scott County, while Bryce Long and Stewart each had 12. The Cardinals improve to 32-3 and will face Butler in the quarterfinals on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
Michael Mayer led Covington Catholic with 18 points and 10 rebounds and Disken had 16 points. The Colonels close the season at 27-8.
BUTLER 65, PERRY COUNTY CENTRAL 62 (OT)
LEXINGTON — The first game of the day was a doozie.
Down nine with less than four minutes to play, Butler rallied, staved off a last-second 3-pointer from a player with the second most made three’s in KHSAA history before pulling off the overtime victory.
The Commodores held a 60-51 lead with 3:52 to play, but Butler ramped up the ball pressure, started forcing PCC’s hand and got back in the contest turnover by turnover, taking three charges in the final three minutes.
The Bears took a 61-60 lead with 1:20 to play, but Marquis Frazier knotted the contest up with 21 seconds to play with a free throw.
After a Butler turnover, the Commodores had a shot to win it, Noah Back, who has made 433 3-pointers in his career, had the good look and it looked good when it left his hands, but it bounced off the rim a couple of times and misfired, putting the game into overtime.
Cameron Underwood got the scoring started in the extra fame and the Commodores were unable to even things up as they missed three of four free throws, getting within one.
Maurice Tolley got the Bears up three with three seconds remaining in the extra frame, Perry County Central’s last attempt on a Back triple fell short as time expired, getting the Bears to Friday’s quarterfinals against Scott County at 6:30 p.m.
Perry County Central shot 66 percent from the game Butler’s defense forced 21 turnovers to help offset.
“The only chance we have is to try and speed the game up and get teams out of their comfort zone to make them play at a pace they’re not used to playing so maybe those shots don’t go in late or they turn it over,” Bears coach Kentreal Goodin said.
Underwood led the Bears with 20 points, adding nine rebounds for an undersized Bears team that doesn’t have a starter over 6-foot-1. Willard Minter added 19, knocking down five 3-pointers.
Perry County Central’s season comes to a close at 19-12. They were led by Noah Caudill’s 20 points and seven rebounds. Back tallied 17 points, hitting 5-of-9 from downtown.
MADISONVILLE-NORTH HOPKINS 57, LINCOLN COUNTY 49
LEXINGTON — The Maroons have won their first Sweet 16 contest since 1989.
Making their first trip to Lexington since 2001, Madisonville was led by the dynamic duo of Kenny White and K’Suan Casey as they topped the Patriots by eight.
White had 21 points, eight rebounds and six blocked shots while Casey recorded a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. The Maroons distributed the ball at a solid pace, recording 16 assists on 20 made field goals.
“Just being unselfish,” Maroons coach Matt Beshear said. “No one cares who gets the points. They came out and zoned us a lot, we had some success swinging the ball quickly, our guards attacking the gaps against the zone and then as K’Suan settled down a little bit inside, he got post position and did a nice job.”
After the Maroons led by as much as 12 in the fourth, the Patriots got within three and had a chance to tie with under three minutes to play, but they misfired on a 3-point attempt and Madisonville converted in transition to get back up five.
A turnover led to a Cade Cunningham layup to make it a three possession game at 51-44 and Lincoln County was unable to recover from there, ending their season at 23-13.
Jaxon Smith led the Patriots with 19 points, Riley Bodner added 11 and Blake Smith tossed in 10.
Madisonville now owns the state’s longest winning streak at 23 games. They’ll move on to Friday’s quarterfinals to face Warren Central at 8 p.m.
WARREN CENTRAL 73, MAYFIELD 55
LEXINGTON – A fast start in the fourth quarter allowed Warren Central to cruise to a 73-55 victory over Mayfield in the final first round game of the Whitaker Bank/KHSAA Sweet Sixteen on Thursday.
The Dragons led, 49-43, heading into the fourth, but poured in 24 points in the frame and held the Cardinals to just 12. Aiyontre Pillow knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to power an 8-0 run to start the quarter.
Dre Boyd led Warren Central with 18 points, Tayshaun Bibb had 15 and Pillow had 13. The Dragons move to 21-11 with the win and will face Madisonville-North Hopkins in the quarterfinals on Friday. The game is scheduled for 8 p.m.
Carson Guthrie led Mayfield with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Kent Trey Matthews also had 12 points and Kade Neely had 11. The Cardinals finish the season at 25-8.
