A 9-0 run to end the first quarter created a big lead for the Owensboro Catholic boys’ basketball team, and their defense held strong for a convincing 60-31 home victory over Apollo to open 9th District play.
The Aces (5-0, 1-0) remained perfect on the season, while the Eagles (1-5, 0-1) suffered a fifth consecutive loss.
Catholic wasted no time in building an early lead, closing the first quarter with a pair of baskets from beyond the arc by Peyton Survant and an old-fashioned 3-point play by John Parker. The two combined for 13 of 19 points in the opening frame.
On the other end, Apollo struggled to get the ball past an aggressive Aces’ defense. Even when they did, the Eagles weren’t able to get many close looks.
“We got off to a great start,” said Owensboro Catholic head coach Tim Riley. “To hold them to 17 points after three quarters, I’m very pleased about that. We did a nice job defensively. We kept them from getting the ball at the basket. Most of their stuff was perimeter shots.”
Harrison Bowman scored six of the eight points for Apollo in the second quarter, while the Aces essentially doubled their lead by halftime. Drew Hartz and Ty Vincent combined for 13 points in the second, most of which came off fast break opportunities created by the Catholic pressure.
“I think we’re better defensively than we are offensively,” Riley said. “The other part will come. Generally when you press you press, you’re going to give up more easy baskets. When you press for two and a half quarters and at the end of the third they only have 17 points, that’s a pretty good job by our kids.”
Scoring slowed for the Aces, but a 52-17 lead heading into the fourth was still more than enough to come away with a district win.
The Aces have only been truly challenged once this season in a 79-73 win over Breckinridge County, but Riley said they’ve still got plenty to work on. With a relatively young roster, there are several mistakes to be corrected, but he’s happy with how the team has performed so far.
“We feel like we’ve got a good team,” Riley said. “We’ve got a lot of improvements to make. We’re far from being a polished group. We have a lot we can get better at.”
Owensboro Catholic stats:
John Parker (16 points), Drew Hartz (12 points), Peyton Survant (9 points), Ty Vincent (8 points), Zach Cecil (6 points), Andrew Riney (4 points), Brian Griffin (4 points), Sam McFarland (1 point)
Apollo stats:
Ryan Ash (9 points), Harrison Bowman (8 points), Dan St. Claire (4 points), Logan Weedman (4 points), Dylon Talbott (3 points), Jaden Kelly (2 points), Sam Parm (1 point)
Looking ahead:
Owensboro Catholic is off for a week before crossing town to take on Daviess County at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Apollo plays at 2 p.m. today against Warren East as part of the Rafferty’s Shootout held at South Warren.
