The Aces grabbed a 69-60 win over the Panthers on Monday thanks to a strong first half, but the team’s aspirations to win night in and night out were left in question by the coaching staff following the district win.
Daviess County got the first bucket of the night, but the Aces quickly responded with a 10-0 run to take the lead with 4:34 left in the first. Getting out in transition at will, Owensboro Catholic took a 23-13 lead into the second.
It was much of the same for the Panthers in the second quarter, as they struggled to crack through multiple defensive looks from the Aces. Offensively Owensboro Catholic didn’t falter either, as they tallied at least 20 points for the second straight quarter en route to a 43-24 lead at halftime.
To open up the second half junior Parker Gray picked up his fourth foul after extending his arm on a drive to the basket, which helped the Panthers pick up some steam on both ends.
Daviess County was able to limit Owensboro Catholic to single digits in the third, while senior Devonte McCampbell had an eight-point quarter to cut its deficit to 50-39 going into the fourth.
“It helped us that Parker was in foul trouble,” Head Coach Neil Hayden said. “He picked up that fourth one early, so that took a scorer out… I thought we got in the lane better and finished some shots.”
The Panthers continued to try and chip away at the Aces lead in the fourth, cutting to as little as seven points with under a minute to play thanks to some late-game proficiency from deep by junior Jack Payne.
However, the hole that Daviess County had dug themselves in the first half was too steep, as they ultimately fell to Owensboro Catholic 69-60.
McCampbell led the Panthers with 20 points on the night, while Payne tallied 14 points on the night with 12 coming from beyond the arc in the fourth.
With Daviess County’s leading scorer in Cole Burch out for the season with a foot injury, McCampbell has really stepped up as a playmaker in a much needed way.
“He’s taken on some and as he’s grown throughout this year he’s able to finish better,” Hayden said. “We’ve been playing him longer stretches. Like he’s hardly coming out at all. He’s definitely matured.”
His efforts will be extremely valuable to the Panthers to close out the season, as they currently sit at 9-14 and 2-3 in district play heading into another home game against McLean County at &:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Junior Brian Griffith led all scorers with 21 points, while junior Ji Webb followed with 20 points and junior Parker Gray earned 10 points despite foul trouble throughout the game for the Aces.
While Owensboro Catholic improved to 13-10 overall and 3-2 in district play, Head Coach Tim Riley was less than impressed with his team’s effort on the road.
“We just don’t hang onto a lead,” Riley said. “We don’t build on it. We had a 19-point lead the other night and then cut it to six against Thomas Nelson and we did the same thing tonight. We just don’t finish games out.”
Owensboro Catholic was only able to earn seven points in the third, while struggling to get going in the fourth as well due to players going iso and forcing shots as opposed to running the offense.
“Our shot selection in the second half was terrible,” Riley said. “Three assists, the ball movement was terrible. How many points we score starts to become a factor, instead of just trying to play good basketball and move the ball.”
This, as well as a lack of desire to play hard on the defensive end has been a concern for Riley and company, as he feels as though his team to buy into an all-out effort on both ends to maximize their potential.
“They have to look at themselves man,” Riley said. “What’s more important? Nobody is going to notice it if we lose. Nobody gives a crap about teams that don’t win. They care about teams that win. Winning is not the priority [to them]. The priority is ‘I wanna score my points’ [in their eyes].”
When asked if Owensboro Catholic can make a deep postseason run Riley was brutally honest, stating that they have the talent, but isn’t sure if his team has the drive to get it done.
“We could, but I don’t know that we will,” Riley said. “I mean we’re 9-3 in the last 12 games and our losses are to Owensboro on the road, a very very good Pikeville team and Oakland that’s out of Murfreesboro that’s a 6A school with unbelievable athletes… So truly there’s an argument that since everybody’s been back we’re 9-2.”
The Aces don’t get a break before they’re tested once again as the regular season nears its end, as they are set for a road matchup with Muhlenberg County at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday before their final district game of the season against Owensboro on Friday.
