The Aces were able to overcome a poor-shooting night to defeat Daviess County 54-46. A low-scoring game throughout, Owensboro Catholic used their aggressive defense to spark their offense late.
It was close the entire first half, as Gage Phelps knocked down a pull-up jumper for DC to tie it 21-21 heading into halftime. Although the Aces were getting in the paint and getting great looks, they failed to convert.
“What’s killing us is we have way too many empty possessions offensively,” Aces head coach Tim Riley said.
One of the few bright spots on offense for the Aces in the first half was Jody Hopgood, who finished with 11 points. The junior center took advantage of an undersized Panthers squad due to injury.
“[Hopgood] just continues to contribute and be a force,” Riley said. “What he does best right now is go rebound, he’s good on the offensive glass.”
It was close during the third quarter as well, as Luke Floyd’s finish at the rim gave DC the lead 31-30 with less than a minute left in the third quarter.
Owensboro Catholic came out much more aggressive in the final quarter, forcing turnovers through their tenacious full-court press defense. The Aces’ run to start the fourth quarter was what completely changed the game. Brian Griffith was a man on a mission, scoring 14 of his 20 points on the night in the fourth quarter alone.
“Brian was really big in the game,” Riley said. “With us pressing that’s where he should be, getting steals in the open court. When he gets in the open court, he’s hard to deal with.”
Daviess County showed great resiliency, keeping it tight throughout while missing three key seniors. They outdid the Aces in almost every category but couldn’t capitalize at the end. This game was promising for the Panthers, especially after a big win over Hancock County, that when healthy they can play with any team in the region.
Sophomore Ayden Ayer has been impressive in the absence of senior guard Jack Payne, running the Panthers’ offense with confidence and averaging 8 ppg in their last four games. Phelps led DC in scoring once again tonight, finishing with ten points.
Daviess County (2-5, 0-2) will take on Taylor County High School on Monday at 3:45 p.m. as a part of the Rafferty’s Caveland Classic hosted at Edmonson County.
The Aces (6-0, 2-0) will look forward to traveling to Madisonville-North Hopkins to take on Webster County High School at 1 p.m. on Monday in the First United Bank Holiday Classic.
