Boys’ Sweet 16: Great Crossing denies Spencer upset bid. ‘We didn’t expect it to be easy.’
No. 1 Great Crossing’s path through the UK HealthCare Boys’ Sweet 16 nearly took a disastrous detour in its first-round game against Spencer County on Wednesday.
Fortunately for the Warhawks, 7-foot-1 Malachi Moreno’s 24 points and 19 rebounds helped put the brakes on the Bears’ upset bid in front of one of the best Sweet 16 crowds in Rupp Arena in years.
“We didn’t expect it to be easy. I mean, there’s 16 darned good teams here,” Great Crossing coach Steve Page said.
Moreno scored the first seven points of a 25-4 second-half run that turned a seven-point third-quarter deficit into a 62-48 win over Spencer County.
Moreno said he doesn’t mind the other team going on a run. He knows what his team is capable of. Their rallies this year have proved it.
“With them being a shooting team like that, it’s really hard to overcome it,” Moreno said. “But I think we just knew in the back of our minds we weren’t going home tonight.”
Great Crossing, based in Georgetown in Scott County, has faced being behind against tough teams throughout the season. It comes down to a “refuse to lose” mindset, Page said. Moreno shared the same thought.
Great Crossing @GCwarhawksbball BY 10. @malachimoreno24 says nah and Junius Burrell @juniusburr13 caps another Warhawk run with a deuce. 2:43 4Q. That escalated quickly 2024 Boys’ #KHSAASweet16 pic.twitter.com/dc9RkzSHsW
— Jared Peck (@HLpreps) March 21, 2024
“It just puts in our mind that we’re the No. 1 team in the state,” Moreno said. “And when we play like it, nobody can beat us.”
Great Crossing (35-1) played like it in the first quarter, leading by as many as 12 points in the early going, but Spencer County (25-10) didn’t wilt.
The Bears began knocking down 3-pointers to get back in it and got a huge one from Kellen Marksbury at the halftime horn to cut Great Crossing’s lead to 29-28. His runner from the Sweet 16 logo banked in as the lights went on and sent Spencer County’s blue-clad faithful into a frenzy.
Spencer County, located in Taylorsville, southeast of Louisville, came out still smoking from long range to begin the third quarter and sprung to the lead on a string of 3-pointers. When Camden Cox hit Spencer County’s ninth 3-pointer of the night to put the Bears up 44-37 midway through the third, the upset alert flashed across social media and buzzed around Rupp.
“We knew Spencer County was going to be tough. We knew that there would be certain times in the game they would get hot,” Page said. “And they made those three 3s in the third quarter. … But our defense was phenomenal after that stretch.”
Moreno began Great Crossing’s rally with a dunk and finished the third quarter by tying the game at 44 with a pair of free throws.
The Warhawks continued to feed Moreno and his 6-foot-7 frontcourt mate Jeremiah Godfrey for layups and dunks down the stretch to pull away. Godfrey finished with 11 points. Point guard Junius Burrell added nine to go with six assists.
Meanwhile, Spencer County found baskets harder to come by. The Bears missed their last 12 3-point attempts and made only two field goals the rest of the game. Spencer County coach Jason Burns admitted Great Crossing’s length and athleticism began to wear on his team.
“We told them to eat their green beans this week, but you can’t grow 6 inches in a week,” Burns joked. “They got us in the second half. I think we did a pretty good job in the first half. We just had to fight.”
Burns estimated Spencer County would need to make 12 3-pointers to have a chance against Great Crossing. They went 9-for-31. Cox led the Bears with 15 points. Luke Erhardt added 11.
Fans turn out
The KHSAA’s announced attendance for Wednesday’s evening session was 14,035. It also included Adair County’s win over Marshall County.
That’s the largest Boys’ Sweet 16 crowd since a 2019 Friday quarterfinal session that included Campbell County, Walton-Verona, Louisville Trinity and Ashland Blazer (14,448).
Boys’ Sweet 16
What: Sixteen-team tournament to decide Kentucky’s high school basketball state champion
When: Wednesday-Saturday
Where: Rupp Arena
Tickets: Tickets available for purchase at KHSAA.org
Boys’ Sweet 16 scores, schedule
At Rupp Arena
WEDNESDAY’S FIRST-ROUND GAMES
▪ Magoffin County 54, Perry County Central 47
▪ Lyon County 45, Ashland Blazer 43
▪ Adair County 72, Marshall County 55
▪ Great Crossing 62, Spencer County 48
THURSDAY’S FIRST-ROUND GAMES
▪ Harlan County 67, Warren Central 59
1:30 p.m.: Butler County (22-8) vs. Evangel Christian (29-6)
6 p.m.: Louisville Trinity (26-7) vs. Pulaski County (23-10)
8:30 p.m.: Newport (32-3) vs. Campbell County (26-6)
FRIDAY’S QUARTERFINALS
11 a.m.: Magoffin County (22-13) vs.Great Crossing (35-1)
1:30 p.m.: Lyon County (33-3) vs. Adair County (29-7)
6 p.m.: Harlan County (32-4) vs. Newport-Campbell County winner
8:30 p.m.: Louisville Trinity-Pulaski County winner vs. Butler County-Evangel Christian winner
SATURDAY’S GAMES
11 a.m.: Semifinal 1: Winners of Friday’s afternoon session
1:30 p.m.: Semifinal 2: Winners of Friday’s evening session
7:30 p.m.: Championship game
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