Topic: Basketball
Saturday March 19th
Christian County (23-9) vs. Eastern (33-2) (Semifinal)
Christian County coach Kerry Stovall started the following lineup: 6-0 Sr. Marcoreyon “Bubba” Tandy, 6-0 Sr. Veontae Lewis, 6-5 Sr. Donovan Kates, 5-10 Sr. Nick Riley, and 5-11 Sr. Anthony Hickey. Eastern coach Jason Couch countered with 6-6 Sr. Lyonell Gaines, 6-3 Sr. Arman Marks, 6-7 Sr. Kameron Woods, 5-11 Sr. Byron Sanford, and 6-3 Sr. Remy Abell.
Christian County upset the number one ranked team in the state Eastern by a score of 46-43. Eastern led 5-3 after the first quarter as both teams were dismal from the field. Eastern warmed up in the second quarter and led 26-20 at halftime. The third quarter was a stalemate with Eastern clinging to a 34-28 lead entering the final quarter. Christian County took a 36-34 lead midway throught the final period as Eastern did not score for the first four minutes of the quarter. Eastern’s Byron Sanford recorded a steal and layup with 36 seconds remaining in the game to give Eastern a 43-42 lead. Donovan Kates hit a layup to give Christian County a 44-43 lead with 24 seconds remaining in the game. Eastern missed two shots in the closing seconds and Veontae Lewis scored on a breakaway layup at he buzzer to give Christian County the 46-43 margin. The incredible stat of the day was that Christian County only committed one turnover for the entire game.
Christian County shot 28.8% from the field including four of 18 from the three point line. The Colonels connected on eight of 14 free throws, pulled down 34 rebounds, and scored nine points off 15 Eastern turnovers. Eastern shot 39.5% from the field including four of 13 from beyond the arc. The Eagles connected on five of eight free throws, pulled down 38 rebounds, and scored two points off one Christian County turnover.
Anthony Hickey led Christian County with 22 points even though he was only nine of 26 from the field. Hickey also pulled down eight rebounds and recorded four steals. Donovan Kates and Marcoreyon “Bubba” Tandy added 11 and nine points respectively. Nick Riley pulled down nine rebounds.
Arman Marks and Remy Abell led Eastern with nine points each. Lyonell Gaines added eight points and seven rebounds. Kameron Woods recorded six points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots.
Christian County,3,17,8,18,46
Eastern,5,21,8,9,43
Christian County (46) – Tandy 9, Lewis 4, Kates 11, Riley 0, Hickey 22.
Eastern (43) – Gaines 8, Marks 9, Woods 6, Sanford 6, Abell 9, Corlew 5.
Bullitt East (30-5) vs. Rowan County (29-5) (Semifinal)
Bullitt East coach Troy Barr started the following lineup: 6-8 So. Derek Willis, 6-3 So. Rusty Troutman, 6-7 Sr. Corey Washburn, 5-9 So. Trey Rakes, and 6-0 Sr. Hayden Sweat. Rowan County coach Shawn Thacker countered with 6-4 Jr. Adam Wing, 6-2 Jr. Jason Egan, 6-7 Sr. Corey Hunter, 5-8 Sr. Darrell Cross, and 5-10 Jr. DJ Townsend.
Rowan County led 48-33 with 4:58 left in the final quarter and held off a furious Bullitt East rally to eke out a 51-49 victory and advance to the championship game. Free throw shooting almost cost Rowan County as they missed four of five free throws down the stretch.
Rowan County shot 46.5% from the field including 10 of 20 from the three point line. The Vikings connected on only one of eight from the free throw line, pulled down 26 rebounds, and scored eight points off 12 Bullitt East turnovers. Bullitt East shot 44.2% from the field including six of 20 from beyond the arc. The Chargers connected on five of six free throws, pulled down 25 rebounds, and scored 16 points off 14 Rowan County turnovers.
Adam Wing led Rowan County with 19 points, nine rebounds, and two blocked shots. Wing was seven of seven from the field including five of five from beyond the arc. Wing slightly injured his knee in the last game and was a question mark for today’s game. DJ Townsend added nine points and nine assists. Jason Egan also scored nine points on three three point baskets.
Corey Washburn led Bullitt East with 16 points and six rebounds. Hayden Sweat added 15 points including three three point baskets. Derek Willis pulled down eight rebounds and blocked five shots.
Bullitt East,9,10,12,18,49
Rowan County,16,8,18,9,51
Bullitt East (49) – Willis 4, Troutman 6, Washburn 16, Rakes 8, Sweat 15.
Rowan County (51) – Wing 19, Egan 9, Hunter 6, Cross 8, Townsend 9.
Acknowledgements:
A special thanks to WL Stats for providing the comprehensive statistics for all the games in the tournament. Also, a special thanks to the KHSAA for their very informative website which covers all aspects of the tournament.