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Wayne County defeats Taylor County 81-61 in the opening round of Monticello Shannon Hutchinson Sports Writer Bank Holiday Classic The Wayne County Cardinals hosted Taylor County last Monday night in the first round of the 2nd Annual Monticello Banking Company Holiday Classic. Both teams entered with 2-4 records, as Taylor County owned a two-game winning streak entering the match-up. The contest marked the first ever meeting between the two schools and the winner would advance to face West Jessamine in Tuesdayıs semifinals. Senior guard Steven Sexton led a season high five Cards in double figures with 18 points, as Wayne County used a 28-9 third quarter run en route to an 81-61 win. Sexton finished 7 of 17 from the field and grabbed 9 rebounds with 10 assists, as the Cards improved to 3-4 on the season. ³I thought this was Stevenıs most complete game of the season and the guys really responded to his leadership. Steven has always been on great teams and this year has been frustrating for him, but I thought in this game he really did a good job of picking everybody up and the guys responded in a big way,² said Wayne County head coach Rodney Woods. Junior forward W.K. Allen responded to his first start of the season in a big way. Allen made 8 of 9 field goal attempts to tally 17 points with 5 rebounds. Cody Decker added 16 points and 5 boards, while Drew Guffey grabbed a game high 11 rebounds with 12 points, as the front court trio finished an impressive 22 of 28 from the field. ³I was especially proud of our three post guys, that kind of production is a big plus for us. We certainly could use that type of production each night and need it, but we realize thatıs probably not going to happen every night,² said Woods. Freshman guard Dustin Wells added a season high 13 points, with 4 assists, to round out the five Cardinals in double digits. Eight different hosts scored in the win, as Wayne County shot a season high 58 percent from the field. Taylor County, which dropped to 2-5, was led by 6-4 center Cory Wright. Wright tallied 20 points, aided by 8 of 12 shooting from the field, plus grabbed a team best 10 rebounds. ³Watching Taylor County on film I thought we might have some match up problems, but we actually matched up pretty decent. They have a pretty young team as well,² said Woods. Taylorıs Zack Cox tallied 11 points with 7 rebounds and 4 assists, as 10 different visitors scored in the contest. Both teams opened 7 of 15 from the field in the first quarter, as Taylor County used the 7 points of Zack Cox to edge to a 20-16 lead. The hosts were paced by the 6 points of freshman forward Cody Decker. Wayne County used a balanced attack with five different scorers in the column in the second stanza, as the Cards used a 20-17 period advantage, to close the gap to 37-36 at halftime. The local Cards connected on 9 of 15 field goal attempts and were led by the 6 points of Drew Guffey, in the second frame. ³In the middle of the second quarter we didnıt communicate in transition and they made us pay. We did a better job of taking care of the basketball, but we had three straight turnovers and they scored three easy buckets,² said Woods. Wayne County used the trio of Steven Sexton, Dustin Wells and W.K. Allen to spark a 28-9 third period run. Sexton tallied 8 points in the period, while Wells and Allen added 7 points each, as the Cards made 12 of 18 shots, to take a 64-46 lead. Taylor County was plagued by 3 of 17 shooting in the third quarter and shot just 25 percent overall in the second half. Five different Cards scored in the final frame, as Wayne County cruised to an 81-61 opening round win. W.K. Allen and Cody Decker paced the attack with 6 points each in the fourth quarter, while Taylor County placed six different scorers in the book, in the final 8 minutes. Taylor County finished 23 of 64 overall for 36 percent and made 4 of 23 3-pointers for 17 percent. The visitors tallied on 11 of 16 free throws for 69 percent and totaled 11 assists, 11 steals and 11 turnovers. Wayne County, which claimed a 38-33 rebound edge, shot 35 of 60 overall for 58 percent and connected on 3 of 18 3-pointers for 17 percent. The Cards finished with a season high 20 assists with 6 steals and 13 turnovers. ³We talked in our workout before the game that weıre averaging 18 turnovers per game and are at a plus 6 in that stat for the season. Weıve had teams average that many before, but usually weıre forcing around 10 of our opponents, so thatıs an area that must improve,² said Woods. The win improved the Cards to 3-4 on the season and advanced the squad into a semifinals match-up with West Jessamine. ³West Jessamine is by far the most athletic team weıve faced this season. West is very physical and it will take a great game for us to have a chance. They are certainly a good challenge for our young team in the early season,² said Woods. Add a comment |
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