Seeing their 11-point halftime lead cut to one with three and a half minutes left in the game, Eli Williams calmly walked out of the timeout. The junior made a move, found himself wide open behind the arc, and nailed a triple – silencing the Aces crowd.
After a defensive stop, Tate Powers scored in the lane and then found himself at the line on their ensuing possession. After making the first, but missing the second, Kayden Green grabbed the offensive rebound and scored the putback – letting out a roar as the Eagles crowd answered him in unison.
A one point game quickly ballooned into an Apollo 54-42 win over Owensboro Catholic to advance to the 9th District Championship and 3rd Region Tournament for the first time since 2018.
“This has been a long time coming,” Apollo Head Coach Ryne Tinsley said. “It’s great to finally get over the hump, so I am very proud of the kids. We responded well when the game was tied, and they have been resilient all year.”
The game was close early on, with Apollo taking a 15-11 lead into the second quarter behind Kayden Green and Carlos Cruz combining for 11 points. Braylon Coots and Dylan Hagan kept the Aces in the game early, combining for seven of their 11 first quarter points.
In the second quarter, Apollo’s defense held the Aces to seven points, while on the other end, Cruz, Williams, and Green scored all 14 of their points.
“We knew they were going to junk it up on us in some form of fashion, and we chose a bad night to not shoot well,” Owensboro Catholic Head Coach Tabor Shadowen said. “They protected the rim well, and we didn’t take enough of an advantage of the stops we got.”
Trailing 29-18 at halftime, it took the Aces just one play to swing the momentum. On their opening possession of the third quarter, senior Dylan Hagan attacked the rim, finished through contact, and scored the ensuing free throw.
After a defensive stop on the other end, Dre’Mail Carothers made a pair of free throws. Next possession, Gavin Brasher sunk a corner three, and Hagan followed that up with a layup to cut the lead to one and forcing Apollo to call a timeout.
Out of the timeout, Eli Williams hit a three to push the lead back to four. Whenever the Eagles need a play, the junior capitalized – sinking four threes – something Tinsley has come to expect.
“There’s just one word. He’s just a winner,” Tinsley said. “So, at the end of the day, if I am going to die, I am going to die with the winner. So, I’m not surprised by his performance at all. It’s who he is.”
From there, the two teams exchanged baskets until Apollo pulled away in the fourth. Green led all scorers with 18 points, Cruz scored 13 points, and Williams added 12 points.
“This definitely feels good,” Green said. “I have been doing this for four years now and this is the first time getting out of the first round. It definitely feels good.”
For the Aces, Hagan led the way with 12 points, Brasher added 11 points, and Coots scored six points.
“I am so proud of our seniors Dylan Hagan and Solly Smith, who represented what Owensboro Catholic Boys Basketball is all about,” Shadowen said. “Much was learned this year by me and the boys alike. I am excited about the group that returns for us next year.”
Next up for Apollo is a rematch with Daviess County in the 9th District Championship on Friday evening.
