With the game and their season on the line Tuesday night, the Christian County Colonels looked to the place most teams would look to in the same situation, their all-state candidates, and it paid off big for the Colonels. Derrell Bateman ignited a 15-0 run in the final quarter as Christian County turned back a Hopkinsville rally and took a 60-45 win in the second 8th District tournament semifinal at Lyle Dunbar Gym.
Bateman’s 11-point 4th quarter was crucial as the Colonels had seen the Tigers chew into what was once a 16-point lead. After finishing the third quarter with an 8-1 run to cut the Christian County lead to 41-34, Hopkinsville then scored the first basket of the final quarter to cut the lead to five and send the Colonel fans into a state of concern.
But thanks to Bateman’s play at the start of the quarter, the Colonels secured their place in Friday night’s championship game with 15 straight points, turning a 41-36 game into 56-36 contest and effectively ending the season for the Tigers.
The game was a typical Christian County-Hopkinsville battle from the beginning, with both teams playing physical, in-your-face defense. Neither team could find their offensive stride in the first quarter, resulting in a 12-6 Christian County lead after one. Prince Northington gave the Colonels’ offense a little jolt with two three-pointers over the first eight minutes.
Northington stayed hot going into the second quarter and got some help from JaSean Riley. The two combined to score 15 points in the quarter to help the Colonels get a little breathing room. Leading 18-13, Christian County scored 11 straight to push the lead out to 29-13. The Colonels’ lead over the Tigers would be 29-18 going into the locker room at the half.
The margin would have been even bigger had it not been for the play of DeReion Dudley, who came up with 10 first-half points for Hopkinsville. The Christian County defense did its job against Antonio Williams in the half, limiting the Hopkinsville big man to 5 first-half points. The Colonels rotated defenders on Williams throughout the game with Northington, Riley, and Bateman seeing most of the work.
The lead for the Colonels was double digits for most of the third quarter until the Tigers, led by Dudley and Williams made their late 8-1 run.
Any chance for the Hopkinsville comeback to reach completion in the 4th quarter was dealt a devastating blow with 4:16 left in the game when Antonio Williams fouled out of the game. With Williams out of the lineup, the Colonels were able to pull away down the stretch to claim the win.
Derrell Bateman finished the night with 22 points to lead Christian County. Prince Northington had 14, 13 of them coming in the first half. JaSean Riley added 13.
DeReion Dudley topped the scoring column for Hopkinsville with 17 points. In his final game for the Tigers, Antonio Williams had 12 before fouling out midway through the final quarter.
Hopkinsville, who reached the regional final last year, sees its season end at 11-17.
Christian County improves to 15-16 with its fifth win in the last six games. The Colonels will now face University Heights in Friday night’s championship game. The two teams split their regular season meetings with each winning on their own home court.
HHS — 6 12 16 11 – 45
CCHS — 12 17 12 19 – 60
Hopkinsville – Dudley 17, Williams 12, Bradley 4, Ramey 3, Kay 3, Moses 2, Garland 2, Radford 2
Christian County – Bateman 22, Northington 14, Riley 13, Miles 8. Quarles 2, Bigbee 1
