Both Owensboro Catholic basketball teams locked up spots in the semifinals of the 3rd Region All “A” Classic, as they each dispatched McLean County in a pair of first-round victories at the Sportscenter on Thursday.
The Lady Aces (10-5) shook a slow start to pull away for a 57-30 win, while the Aces (7-5) built up a big lead early en route to a 57-41 victory.
Each team will move on to play Edmonson County on Saturday, with the girls scheduled to tip off at 4 p.m. and the boys set to play at 5:45 p.m. The rest of the tournament will be played at Edmonson County.
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For more photos from the games, click here.
GIRLS – OCHS 57, MCHS 30
Hannah McKay and Spencer Harvey carried the load offensively for the Lady Aces, but a lockdown defensive effort was just as vital in helping Catholic change momentum after a sluggish start.
McLean County hung tough through the first quarter, using their rebounding prowess to maintain possessions and limit Catholic’s chances.
Leading 9-7 after the first quarter, the Lady Aces extended their pressure. Camille Conkright and Katie Riney came off the bench and led an active defense that turned into quick offense.
“When we started pressing, I though Camille and Katie brought a lot of energy off the bench,” said Catholic head coach Michael Robertson. “When we started doing that, we started forcing them into doing a lot of things they didn’t want to do. We sped them up, then they completely got out of their offense.”
Catholic pushed their lead to 28-16 by halftime and continued to pull away late. Harvey drained three 3-pointers in the second half, and McKay knocked down two of her own to go along with a pair of scores down low.
“Spencer was able to find her shot in the second half,” Robertson said. “She caught fire and hit some nice shots. Hannah got some open ones, and that just really stretched the game and made it hard on them to get back in the game.”
McKay led all players with 19 points and nine rebounds. Harvey scored 14 points, adding five rebounds and four assists. Catherine Head finished with four steals.
BOX SCORE
MCHS 7-9-10-4—30
OCHS 9-19-15-14—57
MCHS (30): Kamryn McMahon (7, 6r), Hailee Johnson (6), Natalie Patterson (6), Hannah Hampton (6), Makena Rush-Owen (5, 8r)
OCHS (57): Hannah McKay (19), Spencer Harvey (14), Ally Maggard (8), Isabella Henning (6), Camille Conkright (3), Maddie Hayden (2), Kinsley Goetz (2), Lauren Keelin (2), Caroline Reid (1)
BOYS – OCHS 57, MCHS 41
Though McLean County mounted a late comeback effort, Catholic’s intense defensive effort proved more than capable of carrying the Aces to a win.
“Really proud of the way we guarded,” said Catholic head coach Tim Riley. “Ultimately I have to give all the credit to that. Coming into the game I thought we could defend really well. I thought we could make it really hard on them to score.”
The Aces didn’t allow a basket for the first four minutes, building a 10-0 advantage during that span. A pair of 3-pointers came during a quick scoring spurt by the Cougars, but it was the last real threat they made of taking a lead.
Catholic again dominated the second quarter, allowing two buckets in the opening minutes then holding McLean County scoreless until a pair of free throws with just two seconds left in the half.
The Aces led by 14 at the half and took a 44-26 advantage into the final quarter. The Cougars closed the gap to 10 points with 2:36 to play, but Catholic finished the game on an 8-2 run.
Riley said his team should have put the game out of reach late in the third quarter, but they didn’t play smart on the offensive end.
“We took some ill-advised shots,” he said. “At the end of the third quarter, we had about seven straight possessions that were bad. That cost us when we had a chance to really pull away from them.”
Catholic’s standout sophomore duo of Brian Griffith and Ji Webb each finished with 16 points to lead all scorers. Andrew Riney added 10 points.
BOX SCORE
MCHS 10-7-9-15—41
OCHS 16-15-13-13—57
MCHS (41): Logan Patterson (15), Jacob Clark (15), Brady Dame (5), Jaden Arnold (2), Braydon Bishop (2), Isaac Springer (2)
OCHS (57): Brian Griffith (16), Ji Webb (16), Andrew Riney (10), Drew Hartz (6), Luke Scales (5), Gray Weaver (4)
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2019-20 basketball coverage is presented by Rhoads & Rhoads Attorneys at Law.
