Lyon County and Newport to Reprise 2023 Sweet 16 Battle

Lyon County and Newport met in the 2023 Boys' Sweet 16 at Rupp Arena - YSE File Photo

Up until last season, the two teams had never met. Now they will meet for the second time in ten months as Lyon County and Newport play in Saturday’s first semifinal game in the All A Classic at The Corbin Arena.

The luck of the draw set up the first meeting between the Lyons and the Wildcats as the two battled it out in the opening round of the 2023 Boys’ Sweet 16 at Rupp Arena.

In that game, the Lyons blew open a close game with a strong second-half finish and advanced on to the state tournament quarterfinals with a 61-46 win. Travis Perry scored 23, Jack Reddick 17, and Brady Shoulders finished with a double-double of 12 points and 13 rebounds.

That also happened to be the game where Travis Perry passed ‘King’ Kelly Coleman to become Kentucky’s all-time leading scorer. The potential is there Saturday for Perry to hit another milestone against Newport. Perry currently stands at 4,978 points, needing just 22 to hit the 5,000-point mark for his career.

Newport advanced to the All A semifinals after limiting Danville Christian to just 11 points in the second half of their quarterfinal game and coming from behind in the second half to take a 46-34 win. The Wildcats limited DCA to just 22.2 percent shooting from the field in the second half.

Taylen Kinney scored 14 for Newport. James Turner finished with 12 points and 7 rebounds.

In the matchup at Rupp last season, Kinney had 11 points while Turner managed just three against the Lyons. Marquez Miller was the leading scorer that day for Newport with 17 points. Miller was the lone senior on that Newport roster.

Newport comes into Saturday’s semifinals at 19-3. The losses have been to Covington Catholic, Great Crossing, and Louisville Trinity. The last two of those losses took place in the King of the Bluegrass. The Wildcats are currently on an 11-game winning streak.

Lyon County is on a winning streak of its own. At 20-1, the Lyons have won 17 straight. The only loss was in Columbia, Missouri when Lyon County dropped a 71-54 decision to Father Tolton.

Tipoff time between the Lyons and the Wildcats is set for 4pm Eastern Saturday in Corbin.