Local boys basketball teams struggled on Saturday night, as Daviess County, Owensboro and Apollo all suffered losses to close out the week.
Daviess County vs Warren East
A disadvantage on the glass as well as from the field and the charity stripe were key factors in a 79-69 road loss to Warren East for Daviess County on Saturday.
The Panthers got off to a strong start, drilling three from beyond the arc in the first quarter en route to a 19-14 lead. But the Raiders flipped the script in the second quarter, as Isaiah Andrews, former Owensboro Catholic big Jari Barber and Micah Ford had six each to help them take a 33-32 lead going into halftime.
Warren East stayed hot coming out of the locker room, as Andrews—who finished leading all scorers with 35 points on the night—had 15 of the team’s 24 points in the quarter to take a 58-50 lead going into the fourth. It was then that Andrews (nine), Connor Doyle (five) and Dane Parsley (five) combined for all 21 points for the Raiders in the fourth, helping them close the door on a 79-69 win over Daviess County.
Junior Gage Phelps led the Panthers with 24 points on the night, while junior Houston Oberst (12), sophomore Ayden Ayer (11) and senior Denver Dickens (11) all finished in double figures. Daviess County’s losing streak was extended to four games with the loss, sitting at 1-4 going into its fourth straight road game against Hancock County on Tuesday, Dec. 13, at 7:30 p.m.
Owensboro vs Heritage Hills
The Red Devils had no answer for Trent Sisley on Saturday, as senior Kenyatta Carbon (28) and freshman Jonathan Moss’ (19) combined 47 points wasn’t enough to lift them past Heritage Hills in a 75-73 win.
Trailing 50-42 going into the fourth quarter, Owensboro was able to limit Heritage Hills to single digits to knot things up at 59-59 to make sure extra basketball would be needed to decide the winner. The two teams proceeded to play two overtime periods, where the Red Devils fell just short and was outscored 16-14 en route to a 75-73 loss.
Sisely led all scorers with 35 points on the night, while no other Red Devils eclipsed double figures besides Carbon and Moss. Owensboro falls to 3-2 to start the season with the loss, as they now have a few days to prepare to host Evansville Central at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 13.
Apollo vs Bethlehem
A strong second half was the deciding factor in a tough home loss to Bethlehem on Saturday night, as Apollo lost its fourth straight at 70-59.
The Apollo got off to a strong start, as senior Donte Dixon chipped in nine points in the first while helping hold Bethlehem to single digits en route to a 17-9 lead going into the second. A number of players got involved in the second quarter for Apollo, but Bethlehem was slowly closing the gap with the deficit now at 33-30 going into the locker room.
Apollo couldn’t hold them off any longer in the second half though, as Nick Osborne (13) and Zane Wickliffe (13) combined for 26 of the team’s 40 points to lead Bethlehem to a 70-59 victory.
Osborne (18), Nick Culver (14) and Wickliffe (13) combined for 45 of Bethlehem’s points in the win. Apollo had senior Zjhan Tutt lead the way with 20 points on the night, while Dixon (15) and junior Eli Masteron (10) finished in double figures as well.
Apollo falls to 0-4 to start the season and now has five days to prepare for another district showdown on Friday, Dec. 16, as the Eagles are set to host the Red Devils at 7 p.m.
