Unable to break down the Mustangs defense and control the pace of play, Owensboro Catholic’s postseason run was cut short with a 58-43 loss in the first round of the 3rd Region Tournament.
It was a very slow start to the contest, with both teams unable to score in the first three minutes of the night. Junior Ji Webb got a dunk for the Aces to open up the scoring with 4:40 left in the first, but junior Cole Vincent answered immediately on the other end to knot it up at 2-2.
This didn’t kickstart either’s offense, as Muhlenberg County and Owensboro Catholic denied each other any spacing, as the Mustangs took a narrow 9-6 lead into the second.
It was much of the same in the second quarter, but the Aces found themselves still trailing early on. It was until sophomore Tutt Carrico finished a tough layup through contact and after missing a free throw, a steal and a layup did Owensboro Catholic have a lead at 16-15 with three minutes to go in the second.
Vincent brought the response once again on the ensuing possession, knocking down a three to make it an 18-16 game. The remainder of the half was grinded out by both teams, as the Mustangs went into the locker room owning an 18-17 lead.
The Aces seemed like they had gained some momentum coming out of halftime, grabbing a 25-22 lead thanks to offense coming almost exclusively from junior Brian Griffith. However, consecutive turnovers turned into a 6-0 run for Muhlenberg County, as they took a 28-25 lead with 2:48 left in the third.
Sophomore Jari Barber had a chance to tie it at 30 following a spin move in which he converted the layup and was fouled, but his free throw missed long. The Mustangs took advantage, eventually growing their lead to 34-29 going into the fourth thanks to a tough fadeaway at the left elbow from Vincent at the buzzer.
Hoping to extend the game after not being able to find a rhythm offensively, Owensboro Catholic began fouling about halfway through the fourth. But Muhlenberg County thrived at the charity stripe, going 15-17 as a team.
3rd Region Player of the Year senior Trey Lovell went 6-6 from the line himself, while earning 10 of his game-leading 17 points to close the door on a 58-43 first round win for the Mustangs.
“I’m very proud of our effort,” said Head Coach Kyle Eades. “I thought we were really good defensively all night. Even in the first half we struggled to score a little bit in the halfcourt, [but] I thought in the second half we were able to get some defensive stops that turned into transition points on the other end. That got us a little bit of a gap and then we were able to spread out and execute in the halfcourt.”
Following right behind Lovell in scoring was senior Brayden Lovan with 12 and Vincent who chipped in 11 with Muhlenberg County’s lone three of the night. The Mustangs backcourt was a crucial factor in the win, as their decision-making and change of pace had the Aces on their toes all night.
“We just try to control tempo and we’ve got great guard play,” Eades said. “Trey and Brayden and Davion, they’re all very good ball-handlers and they’re all very capable scorers… I thought tonight we did a good job of picking and choosing our times when to run and then when those times when they did a good job of getting back and setting their defense, I thought we were able to kind of pull it back and run halfcourt offense.”
Head Coach Tim Riley felt that this was what the Mustangs would try to do coming into the game and said that he knew they’d be in trouble if they fell behind.
“It’s a veteran team and I said all along their team is willing to grind it out,” Riley said. “When they got the lead they were willing to grind and grind until they got what they wanted. I thought we panicked when we were down seven and we took some really bad shots. We thought we had to have a homerun and we didn’t and we took some bad shots and it got worse.”
Defensively Muhlenberg County was able to keep Owensboro Catholic from getting out in transition, while also giving them no space all over the floor in the halfcourt. This was a key factor in holding Griffith to 11 points on the night.
“[Our goal was] just to be disruptive…” Eades said. “You’re looking at two guys that are basically averaging 40 points combined a game. Brian is one of those guys that can really control a game… We just wanted to be physical with him and we wanted to try and disrupt his rhythm as much as we could.”
Eades said they wanted to do the same with Webb and Barber, knowing that when they get to certain spots in the post they’re extremely hard to stop because of their size. While Barber got out to a team-leading 13 points, Webb had a season-low four points on the night.
Riley felt that the team played well defensively, but just struggled to get much offense going along with a not completely healthy Griffith.
“We played really well in the first half,” Riley said. “Brian gave us all he got… We lost that speed and quickness in that spot. Against a team like that it made it difficult… They were a senior team and they were more physical than we were.”
Owensboro Catholic’s season comes to an end in the first round of the 3rd Region Tournament, as they finish with a 17-13 overall record. With no seniors on the roster, the Aces have the chance to return their entire roster next season.
