After getting manhandled by Lyon County in the 2nd Region All A championship game and then having an unexpected, extended mid-season break due to winter, the University Heights Academy Blazers responded with a big performance Monday night. UHA used stifling defense and a big night from behind the 3-point line to roll past McCracken County 70-50 in Blazer Gym.
The 50 points were McCracken County’s third-lowest point total of the season and the fewest the Mustangs had scored against a Kentucky opponent.
The Blazers opened the game looking a little bit like a team that had been off for a week in the middle of the season. Early on, UHA had trouble getting into the offensive flow, getting shots to fall, and getting their defense cranked up to where the Blazers normally like it to be.
All of that translated into McCracken County jumping out to a 7-2 lead. However, once the Blazers got honed in on defense, things began to change a bit.
As has been the case often this season, it was the defense that got the UHA offense up and rolling. Their smothering full-court pressure began to affect the Mustang ballhandlers and the the Blazers were able to take advantage of some of the resulting turnovers.
UHA used a 7-0 lead to take an 11-10 lead late in the opening quarter. A shot from behind the arc would put the Blazers up 14-11 going into the second quarter.
After a slow start, Elijah Walton began to find a hole in the Mustang zone defense and was able to exploit it, scoring six points in the second quarter. His play inside was complimented by the outside work of Quinton Quarles. The Blazers also got some key second-quarter minutes from Matthew Hauret.
With their offense getting a jolt from their defense, the Blazers were able to run the lead out to as many as ten points in the final moments of the half.
McCracken was able to salvage some momentum going into the break as Dylan Jackson was able to pick up a tipped rebound behind the 3-point line and bury the shot to trim the UHA lead to 32-25 at the break.
The momentum from the last-second shot was short-lived however for the Mustangs. Kyler Baker and Tylin George scored the first five points of the second half as UHA pushed the lead back out to double-digits at 37-25. The lead hovered around that mark until the latter part of the third quarter.
A basket by Jackson Klope and a steal and layup for Jay Martin brought McCracken to within 44-38. But then the Blazers responded with the ‘Q’ factor.
Quinton Quarles bagged two threes over the final moments of the quarter as the Blazers were able to fend off the potential comeback and take a 50-42 lead into the final eight minutes of the game.
The lead was down to 55-48 when the Blazers delivered a major knockout blow to the Mustangs. Quarles, along with Tylin George, ignited a 15-0 run to declare game, set, and match, as the Blazers left the Mustangs standing in their wake. Again, the Blazer defense was a big part of the effort. That, plus the deep ball, as Quarles and George combined to knock down seven shots from behind the arc in the second half.
Quinton Quarles finished the night with 21 points, including five made 3-pointers. Tylin George added 19 points. The two combined to score 27 points in the second half. Kyler Baker had a strong night down in the paint, finishing with 9 points.
McCracken County was led by Connor Miller with 14. Jackson Klope was strong on the boards for the Mustangs and added 13 points.
UHA improves to 12-4 on the season. The Blazers are set to be back in action Friday night in a huge 8th District game when they host Christian County.
MCHS — 11 14 17 8 – 50
UHA — 14 18 18 20 – 70
McCracken County – Miller 14, Klope 13, Jackson 6, Fulcher 6, Martin 5, Parish 2, Hawes 2, Dawson 2
University Heights – Quarles 21, George 19, Baker 9. Walton 6, Hauret 6, Northington 4, Grubbs 3, Pollard 2
