Wayne County Outlook

Lexington Catholic upends W.C. Cardinals 90-49
SHANNON HUTCHINSON
Sports Writer

The Wayne County Cardinals traveled to Lexington Catholic last Friday

night to face the homestanding Knights in the regular season finale for both

teams. The Cards entered the match-up with a 6-18 record, while Catholic was

coming off wins over #1 South Laurel and #2 Scott County to own an

impressive 20-6 mark.

The contest marked the third meeting between the 11th and 12th Region

schools with the Knights winning the previous two, including a 73-53

decision last February at Cardinal Gym.

Junior guard Cornell Burbage netted 16 of his team high 22 points,

during a 35-8 second quarter run, as Lexington Catholic erased a 17-15

deficit and rolled to a 90-49 home win. Burbage shot 9 of 12 from the field

and 2 of 2 from the charity-stripe, plus tallied 4 steals with 3 rebounds,

to pace four Knights scoring in double-digits.

P.J. Wilson added 18 points, all in the first half, while Joe Boneau and

Reid Brown tallied 10 points each. Boneau contributed 5 assists with 3

boards, while Brown grabbed 5 boards, as Catholic claimed a 45-25 rebound

advantage.

�We opened with probably our best quarter of basketball of the season.

We moved the ball well, got some good looks at the basket and Steven made a

couple of big shots. After our good start they changed defenses out of the

full-court and matched-up more in the half-court and attacked the passing

lanes. We didn�t respond very well and made some soft passes and they really

made us play,� said Cards head coach Rodney Woods.

Wayne County, which dropped to 6-19, was once again plagued in two key

areas. The Cards were out-rebounded on the offensive glass by a 21-4 tally

and committed 26 turnovers in the loss.

�We have to take better care of the basketball, which is something we�ve

talked about all season, plus our effort on the glass is a mystery. To be at

this point of the season and still have guys going all game without a

rebound is tough to understand,� said Woods.

The Cards were led by the game high 25 points of senior guard Steven

Sexton. Sexton shot 7 of 14 from the field and 8 of 11 from the free throw

line, plus grabbed 6 rebounds with a team best 4 assists. Cody Decker, a 6-5

freshman forward, netted 10 points and 6 rebounds, as two Cards reached

double figures.

Senior Drew Guffey tallied 4 points with 5 boards, while five different

Cards added 2 points each, as eight different visitors etched the scoring

margin.

Wayne County used the 12 points of Steven Sexton and 6 of 13 shooting

from the field to claim a 17-15 first quarter lead. Catholic, starting a

senior-dominated lineup on �Senior Night,� was paced by the 9 points of P.J.

Wilson.

Wilson added 3 3-pointers in the second stanza and Cornell Burbage

exploded for 16 points in the period as the Knights used a 35-8 run, to take

a 50-25 halftime lead. The hosts converted on 15 of 21 field goal attempts

during the run, while Wayne County made just 3 of 10 attempts and committed

8 turnovers.

Six different Knights scored in the third frame, as the squad made 7 of

15 attempts from the field and used a 20-14 edge to roll to a 70-39 lead.

Sexton and Decker provided most of the Cardinal offense in the middle

quarters, as the duo accounted for 20 of Wayne County�s 22 points.

Reserve Reid Brown scored all 10 of his points in the final quarter, as

Lexington Catholic ended the game on a 20-10 run and cruised to a 90-49 win.

A review of the stats shows the Knights shot 37 of 78 overall for 47

percent and tallied on 7 of 20 3-pointers for 35 percent. The winners made 9

of 12 free throws for 75 percent and totaled 20 assists, with 17 steals

against 10 turnovers.

The Cards shot 16 of 40 from the field overall for 40 percent and made 4

of 15 3-pointers for 27 percent. The squad converted on 13 of 21 free throws

for 62 percent and tallied 8 assists, 3 steals and 26 turnovers.

�Going into this game I really liked our attitude going into the

district tournament, but after this game it�s kind of up in the air. I�m

worried that we had three of our best practices of the season and our three

freshmen really practiced with confidence, but that didn�t carry over to the

game. Once again when they turned up their pressure, we were left

shell-shocked,� said Woods.

The win improved Lexington Catholic to 21-6 on the season and 3-0

all-time against Wayne County.

Up next for the Cards is a Tuesday night match-up with McCreary Central

in the opening round of the 47th District Tournament at Monticello. The

Cards swept the regular season series with the Raiders, but needed overtime

to claim a home win in early December.

�McCreary Central always appears to come out ready when they have a long

time to prepare for an opponent. Anytime a team is considered an underdog,

you fear their ability to make a game ugly and they are very capable of

that. We�ve had to do that at times this year, so that�s a real concern. On

a positive note I do like the way both Steven and Cody have played lately,�

said Woods.

Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. Tuesday night, as the Cards attempt to claim

their 12th straight trip to the 12th Region Tournament.

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