Tuesday, December 23, 2008
MORTONS GAP — Ahead 21 points to start the fourth quarter, the Hopkins County Central basketball team felt no pressure from visiting Lyon County, but that did not last long on Monday evening.
The Lyons chipped away at the deficit and cut it to four with 1:50 remaining in the game, but Central displayed its poise and ended the contest on its own run for an 80-70 victory in the last game of the Hopkins County Central Holiday Classic.
Leading comfortably to begin the fourth, the Storm needed a 10-4 run to stave off Lyon County.
“Coach Bell, he pushes us to keep the lead,” junior Je’Vonte Hughes said. “We had a let down, but we came back with a spark and we pulled it out and came out with a win.”
Hughes’ offense throughout the first 24 minutes greatly contributed to Central’s sizable lead.
Hughes, a 5-9 guard, slashed and dashed in transition and through traffic, sometimes taking on as many as three defenders in the lane in an effort to get to the free-throw line.
By evening’s end, Hughes amounted a game-high 27 points and earned player of the game recognition.
Coach Matt Bell said it was Hughes’ seven assists that really stood out though.
“He’s so much better this year than last year because he gets people involved,” Bell said. “Last year, he was still learning that process and trying to figure it out. He draws so much attention that the other guys on the floor have to be ready for something to happen.”
As for deciding whether to go to the hoop or kick out, Hughes said his judgment lies within the amount of space in front of him.
“It depends on how big the hole is to the basket,” he said. “If two people collapse, I hit the open man. If they don’t, I just go all the way.”
Post player Chuck Jones secured a double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds to go along with four blocks. Jones’ three-pointer as time expired in the third quarter gave the Storm a 62-41 advantage.
After the game, Bell said Central scored on 12 of its last 15 possessions in the third while Lyon converted just one time in its last eight touches.
The Lyons did not let their third quarter ineffectiveness haunt them down the stretch though.
“Basketball is a game of runs and we really preach that,” Bell said. “When you play quality teams, they’re going to put runs together.”
During the final minute of the game, Jones made two more keys plays to lock down the victory. The first came on an outlet pass to teammate Josh Riley, who hauled in the toss and converted on a reverse lay-up to move ahead seven points.
On the Storm’s next offensive possession, Jones pumped from deep on the wing, drove to the rim and gave Central a 76-67 lead with 50 seconds left.
Jones said his points did not come easy battling against Lyon’s Ramsey Walker, who amassed 21 points of his own.
“He’s a real good post player,” he said. “You can learn a lot from him. You have to respect him and know what he’s trying to do and not let him do that.”
Central returns to action 4:30 p.m. E.T. on Friday in the 5th/3rd Classic at Lexington Catholic.
LCHS (6-2) 15 16 10 19 – 70
HCCHS (6-2) 21 15 26 18 – 80
LCHS: Ramsey Walker 21 Mitchell Peeler 14 Taylor Gray 10 Bryant Houk 8 Warron Sutton 5 Aaron Corley 4 Brandon Crady 4 Casey Kinnis 2 Timmy Perdue 2
HCCHS: Je’Vonte Hughes 27 Chuck Jones 20 Josh Riley 13 Dan Croft 8 Cameron Tabor 7 Corey Coble 4 Justin Vanvactor 1
Saturday’s game
After 24 minutes of back-and-forth basketball, Hopkins County Central and Union County entered the fourth quarter locked in a tie ballgame on Saturday.
That’s when the Storm (5-2) darted ahead to capture a tough 51-43 victory against Union County (1-7) in the Hopkins County Central Holiday Classic.
Turnovers plagued Central in the beginning, but coach Matt Bell said his team made better decisions as the game progressed.
“We emphasized when you take care of the basketball and don’t turn the ball over, it prevents (Union) from being able to score off their defense and we did a better job of that in the second half,” Bell said.
Junior guard Josh Riley put forth his greatest effort at the right moment, scoring six points in the fourth quarter. After a missed Chuck Jones’ three-pointer, Riley slipped inside for the tip-in. The bucket gave the Storm a five-point lead with 3:35 left in the game.
“Chuck likes to step out and shoot and that’s fine because he can shoot,” Riley said. “I like to get in and get rebounds every now and then.
“I couldn’t find my rhythm from outside, so I started crashing the boards and got some put-backs.”
One possession later, senior guard Corey Coble sent an outlet pass to 6-9 Dan Croft, who thundered down the court and slammed the ball home. Croft’s dunk ignited the crowd and put Central ahead by seven.
The Storm continued to build upon their lead in the game’s final minutes, leading by as many as 10.
After the game, Croft described his strategy when he’s battling inside during a close game.
“If they’re guarding you, kick it back out,” he said. “If they’re behind you, try to drop step, go around them and score.”
Croft finished the game with a double-double: 17 points and 19 rebounds. For his efforts, Croft was named the player of the game.
Riley also reached double-digits with 13. Chuck Jones tallied 11 points.
UCHS (1-7) 13 14 8 8 – 43
HCCHS (5-2) 15 12 10 16 – 51
UCHS: Torez Jones 11 Fabian Curry 8 Levi Brown 6 Devin Foster 6 Riley Hall 5 Kren Rister 5 Justin Price 2
HCCHS: Daniel Croft 17 Josh Riley 13 Chuck Jones 11 Je’Vonte Hughes 6 Connor Moore 4
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