Reece Davidson could not finish that last shot at the rim that would have possibly forced overtime in North Laurel’s loss to St. Xavier. (Les Nicholson Photo)
St. Xavier coach Kevin Klein didn’t need any help figuring out where North Laurel was going to go with the basketball trailing 44-42 with under 20 seconds to go in Friday’s UK HealthCare Boys’ Basketball Sweet 16® quarterfinal matchup.
“We know the basketball has got to go to the Mr. Basketball finalist (Reece Davidson, a Liberty signee).
North Laurel coach Nate Valentine knew the same thing.
“We tried to hit him on the lob on the side out of bounds play and they took that away,” Valentine said. “Then we took another timeout and went to Reece to just get him downhill. They are very physical at the rim.”
Last year Davidson made two free throws to give North Laurel a 54-53 state win over Breathitt County. He is the team’s leading scorer and one of the best players in the state.
This time he could not deliver under the pressure from St. Xavier’s Jeremiah Jackson and Jordan Jackson. He tried to possibly draw a foul and score but ended up with an off-balance shot that was off the mark with :07 to play in what turned out to be a 46-44 loss.
“It’s about getting the ball in your best player’s hands. He had options and he has made the right decisions all year long,” Valentine said. “We gave it to our best player with a chance to win. He has carried us all year. That’s all you can ask.”
Davidson finished with 15 points on 6-for-13 shooting against one of the state’s best defensive teams that limited North Laurel to 17 of 41 shooting overall. It also held the Jaguars to just four points in the first quarter to build a 12-4 lead.
“I got past him (Jeremiah Jackson). I did a good job staying in front of him, got him on my hip but the big kid was trying to block the shot,” Davidson said.
Having a chance to win at the end was all Valentine hoped for going into the game. Many considered it an upset when North Laurel beat Warren Central to even advance.
“They (St. X) have three or four Division 1 players. We knew what we were up against. We won three of the four quarters but they did a nice job being physical early and took us out of what we wanted to do,” Valentine said. “If they are engaged and want to guard, they are really, really good.
Klein’s team was one of the favorites to win last year’s state title but lost 64-59 to Jeffersontown in the opening round. Now St. X will play Grayson County, which knocked off defending state champion Great Crossing Friday, in Saturday’s semifinals.
