After a tight start, the Owensboro Catholic boys’ basketball team used stellar defensive play to pull away for a 57-39 home victory over Grayson County to remain perfect this season.
The Aces (4-0) forced 15 Grayson County (2-2) turnovers Tuesday at the Sportscenter, thanks in large part to their full court press. Several fastbreak opportunities in the second half allowed for Catholic to pull away late, outscoring the Cougars by 14 over the final two quarters of play.
Grayson County jumped out to an 7-4 advantage to start the game. Not liking the effort from some of his starters, Aces’ head coach Tim Riley decided to take his first timeout with only three minutes gone by in the game.
Following that timeout, scores by Drew Hartz, Ty Vincent and Peyton Survant capped a 13-6 scoring run for Owensboro Catholic. By the end of the first period, Catholic led 17-13m, and the Aces never looked back for the remainder of the contest.
On the night, four Aces scored in double digits. Andrew Riney and John Parker had 11 points each, while Drew Hartz and Ty Vincent each scored 10. Freshman Brian Griffith chipped in with six points of his own, while also playing strong defense and running the offense.
“Griffith had a great game tonight,” Riley said. “We wouldn’t have won that ballgame without him. He made some great passes, set his teammates up for easy baskets and made some tough shots of his own. The big thing with Griffith is his ability to create looks for his teammates.”
Leading by 20 points with under two minutes to play, Riley was able to give some of his younger players a chance to see game action. He said it is for his freshmen to get some exposure.
“I call this a ‘trap’ game,” Riley said. “Coming off a big emotional win last night against Breckinridge County, it was a really hard-fought win tonight. Grayson is a tough team and this game definitely had the potential to catch us off guard.”
Riley said he hopes to continue to improve the defense throughout the season.
“We hope for turnovers,” Riley said. “Defense that leads to offense is our calling card. Our defense has created lots of looks for us so far this year. We need to continue to improve daily. It’s so early in the year, so we need to keep getting better.”
The Aces are set to open district play Friday when they host Apollo in a boys and girls doubleheader.
Owensboro Catholic Statistics: Andrew Riney (11 points), John Parker (11 points), Drew Hartz (10 points), Ty Vincent (10 points), Brian Griffith (6 points), Peyton Survant (6 points, 2 three-point baskets), Zach Cecil (3 points). Team (11-15 free throws).
