The Woodford County High School boys' basketball team lost to Trinity, 63-40, Saturday, Jan. 26 at the Hive. The Jackets were scrappy in the first half and trailed by only three at halftime, but were outscored 35-15 in the second half. Trinity senior Stan Turnier opened the game with a long three-pointer to give the Shamrocks a quick 3-0 lead. WCHS senior Brandon Cromwell weaved through four Shamrock defenders for a terrific layup, but another long three-pointer from Trinity gave the Shamrocks the 6-2 lead with 4:30 remaining in the first quarter. After a pair of baskets in the paint by the Shamrocks, Cromwell hit a pair of threes to cut Woodford's deficit to just two points. Cromwell hit another shot from beyond the arc, but the Shamrocks continued to make baskets inside the paint and took a 16-13 lead after one quarter. Trinity senior David Johnson hit a long three from the top of the key, but WCHS senior Ben Nash responded with a three in front of the Shamrock bench. The Shamrocks increased their lead to six points on an old fashioned three-point play but Cromwell and Nash both hit three-pointers to tie the game at 23. Trinity sophomore Zach Stallman went on a 5-0 run with less than six seconds remaining in the half, and WCHS senior Corey George hit a jump shot at the buzzer to cut Woodford's deficit to 28-25. The Jackets offense stalled in the third quarter. Cromwell was fouled while scoring on a layup and converted the free throw, but the Shamrock defense turned the Jackets over on multiple occasions and outscored Woodford 20-6 in the quarter.
George opened the fourth quarter with a basket, but the Shamrocks quickly went on a 5-0 run to increase their lead to 20 points. Woodford emptied its bench midway through the fourth quarter.
Frankfort
The Jackets earned the No. 1 seed in the district tournament with a 70-67 overtime win over Frankfort Friday, Jan. 25. The game was a thriller from the opening tip. The Jackets held the lead for much of the game but the Panthers stayed within striking distance and tied the game with hustle plays at the end of regulation. Woodford opened the game with a 12-7 lead on threes from Cromwell and Nash and a terrific layup by junior point guard Anthony Tabor. George scored on a spin move in the post and Panthers added a late basket, but Woodford led 14-7 after one quarter. The Panthers opened the second quarter on a 4-0 run, but Tabor was fouled attempting a three-pointer and made all three shots at the charity stripe. George scored again in the paint to increase the Jackets' lead to nine with 3:45 to play in the half. The Panthers upped their defensive pressure and created turnovers that led to easy transition points to climb back into the game. Nash and Tabor each hit a three-pointer in the final minute to give Woodford a 28-23 lead at halftime. Cromwell hit a jump shot, and Tabor nailed a three-pointer to increase Woodford's lead to 10 points, but the Panthers responded with a 10-0 run to tie the game at 33. Both teams exchanged baskets for much of the third quarter, and Frankfort junior Will O'Bryan hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Panthers a 43-40 lead heading to the fourth quarter. WCHS senior Ryan Duke scored on a driving layup around Frankfort center Jon Tillman to open the fourth quarter. Tillman scored in the post and Tabor hit a long three-pointer to tie the game at 45. The Jackets closed the third quarter on a 6-0 run and led 55-49. Woodford led by eight points with 90 seconds to play in regulation, but the Panthers fought back into the game with fantastic defense. Frankfort senior DaJuan Davis hit a three-pointer and then scored on a jump shot after a Jacket turnover. The Panthers stole Woodford's inbound pass, and senior Juanya Frank hit a three-pointer to tie the game. Tabor was fouled and made both free throws giving the Jackets a two-point lead with 16 seconds to play. Frank's three-pointer attempt was off the mark, but Tillman tipped the ball in off the rebound to tie the game with three seconds remaining. Cromwell's last-second attempt fell short to send the game to overtime. "It felt great to get this win tonight," said Tabor. "I am thankful to my teammates for finding me when I got hot in the second half. They were looking for me and I was lucky to make some shots and keep us going in this game. We don't want to feel satisfied after the win. We have a lot of work ahead and every game prepares us for the postseason." Tillman scored the opening basket in overtime, but Tabor scored on a layup and Nash hit a three-pointer in front of Woodford's bench to give the Jackets a three-point lead with 30 seconds remaining. Penn blocked Frank's last-second shot attempt and the Jackets celebrated the regular season district title on their home floor. "I think we will take away the fact that we found our toughness tonight," said WCHS Coach Ryan Wilson. "I told the guys that if you were going to write a book on how to lose a ball game, you just have to write down everything we did in the last few minutes of that fourth quarter. Having said that, we still managed to get the win, and clinch that number one seed in the district."
Collins
The Jackets beat Collins, 69-62, Tuesday, Jan. 22 at the Hive. Woodford led 20-11 at the end of the first quarter with five points by Ashton Myles-Devore and Nash and George scoring four points each. The Jackets increased their lead in the second quarter and led 43-32 at halftime. Woodford hit five three-pointers in the second quarter including a pair from Tabor. The Jackets stayed hot from beyond the arc in the third quarter and took a 15 point lead into the fourth quarter. The Titans cut their deficit to single digits, but the Jackets held on for the win.