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Cards rebound with 86-61 win over Knox Central Shannon Hutchinson Sports Writer The Wayne County Cardinals hosted Knox Central last Friday night at Cardinal Gym. The Cards entered the 16th meeting between the two schools with a 5-13 mark. Knox Central, from the 13th Region, owned a 5-11 record and was coming off an overtime loss to Clay County earlier in the week. Wayne County owned a 12-3 record all-time against the Panthers, including an 88-54 win last February at Knox Central. Steven Sexton led three Cards scoring in double figures with a game high 32 points, as Wayne County won every quarter en route to claiming an 86-61 win. Sexton finished 12 of 21 from the field and a perfect 3 of 3 from the charity-stripe, plus grabbed 8 rebounds with 4 assists, as the hosts improved to 6-13 on the season. ³Steven really took a physical beating in this game, but what an unreal effort. If he¹s not the Player of the Year in this region, I think it would be a crying shame,² said Cards head coach Rodney Woods. Freshman center Cody Decker posted his first double-double of the season with 15 points and a career high 13 rebounds. Drew Guffey sparked the reserves with 8 points and 12 boards, as Wayne County enjoyed a 48-31 rebound advantage. ³No questions about it I thought Cody had his best overall game of the year. He¹s been getting better each week and on the verge of breaking-out, but has been limited due to foul-trouble. I also thought Drew gave a big effort and was very active on the glass,² said Woods. The coach was also pleased with a plus 17 on the rebound stat-line. ³By far our best rebounding effort of the season. We hammered our guys in practice pretty good this week and everybody stepped in and gave a really good effort,² said Woods. Dustin Wells added 13 points and 3 assists, while Wesley Dick contributed 7 points with a game high 6 assists, as eight different Cards scored in the win. Knox Central, which dropped to 5-12, was led by the 20 points of Marcus McKeehan. McKeehan finished just 6 of 23 from the field, while Doug Cobb netted 12 points, as seven different Panthers etched the scoring column. Steven Sexton led all players with 8 points in the opening frame, as Wayne County claimed a 14-9 lead. Three different Panthers scored in the quarter, as the visitors connected on only 4 of 16 field goal attempts. Sexton added 9 points in the second stanza and the Cards shot 41 percent in the first half, while taking a 30-21 halftime edge. Marcus McKeehan led the Panthers with 5 points in the second period, as the hosts enjoyed a 16-12 quarter advantage. Six different Cards scored in the third frame, paced by the 9 points of Cody Decker, as Wayne County used a 24-22 edge to push to a 54-43 lead. The Cards shot 67 percent in the second half and made 10 of 16 attempts in the quarter, while the Panthers countered with 7 of 14 shooting in the third quarter. Steven Sexton added 10 points in the final eight minutes and the Cards ended the game with a 32-18 run, en route to cruising to an 86-61 win. Seven different hosts scored in the final period, while Central was led by the 7 points of Doug Cobb. Jacob Gregory and W.K. Allen contributed 4 points each, while Jordan Perkins tallied 3 points, to round-out the Cards in the scoring margin. Knox Central finished 22 of 69 overall from the field for 32 percent and tallied on 8 of 26 3-pointers for 31 percent. The Panthers made 9 of 15 free throws for 60 percent and totaled 12 assists, with 8 steals against 11 turnovers. Wayne County shot 31 of 55 overall for 56 percent and converted on 11 of 20 3-pointers for 55 percent. The squad made 13 of 20 free throws for 65 percent and totaled 6 steals against 16 turnovers. The Cards tallied 17 assists, a stat not lost on the head coach. ³I thought we really moved the ball around pretty well. We¹ve been talking to our guys about the size of our post players and the fact we need to get the ball up in the air to them. I thought Wesley Dick stepped-up and really made some nice assists,² said Woods. The Cards return to action this week with two games. The squad hosts Southwestern on Tuesday night and then travels to 11th Region foe Madison Central on Friday night. ³I know it feels good to win and it will be interesting to see if our win over Knox Central carries over to Tuesday night¹s game. Two rough games this week and it gives us a chance with Southwestern to see if we¹ve improved since our game earlier this season. Madison Central is always well-coached and one of the more talented teams in the 11th Region,² said Woods. Add a comment |
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