Wayne County Outlook

Cards defeat Monticello 56-46 to claim district title
Shannon Hutchinson
Sports Writer

The Wayne County Cardinals met tournament host Monticello last Friday

night at Trojan Gym in the championship game of the Boys 47th District

Tournament. The Cards advanced into the match-up with a 61-47 win over

McCreary Central, while Monticello claimed a 62-57 opening round over

Russell County earlier in the week.

Wayne County entered the 91st meeting between the cross-town rivals with

a 7-19 mark on the season and looking for their school record 12th straight

47th District title. The Trojans entered the match-up with a 16-10 record on

the season and looking for their first district crown since 1987. The

contest marked the first meeting of the season between the two schools.

Tournament MVP Steven Sexton scored a game high 42 points, as Wayne

County claimed a 56-46 championship game win. Sexton, a 6-1 senior guard,

made 15 of 34 attempts from the field and 5 of 7 free throws, plus grabbed 4

rebounds with 3 assists, as the Cards improved to 8-19 on the season.

�I�m so proud of this team for the way they continued to work towards

the goal of winning the district all season. To enter the tournament with

only six wins and still win it says a lot about this team. Our record is not

where we wanted it to be, but this championship is certainly a special one,�

said Cards head coach Rodney Woods.

The coach also was very proud of the effort of his talented senior

guard.

�Steven is one of the hardest workers we�ve ever had in this program and

he�s been such a leader to our younger guys. To play a position he�s never

played before and do it without saying a word says so much about the type of

winner he is. He would give up any individual awards to win, plus in this

game he was so banged-up, but the big game atmosphere is what he thrives

on,� said Woods.

All-Tournament member Drew Guffey added 6 points with 11 rebounds, while

Jacob Gregory totaled 11 boards and 3 points, as six different Cards scored

in the win.

Monticello, which dropped to 16-11, placed three scorers in double

digits led by junior guard Michael Borden. Borden, an All-Tournament

selection, netted a team high 15 points with 5 rebounds and a game high 4

assists.

All-Tournament selections Phillip Inman and Sam Jenkins both contributed

solid efforts in the game. Jenkins posted 12 points with 12 rebounds and

Inman tallied 10 points with 12 boards, as six different Trojans scored in

the contest.

Defense and poor shooting dominated the opening quarter, as Wayne County

made 4 of 15 shots to claim an 11-8 lead. The Trojans shot 3 of 11 from the

field and were plagued by 5 turnovers in the first frame.

Six different Trojans scored in the second stanza, as the hosts made 8

of 15 shots and used a 21-19 period edge, to close the halftime score to

30-29. Wayne County shot 39 percent in the first half and was led by the 21

points of Steven Sexton. Monticello countered with 42 percent shooting from

the field and was paced by the 9 points of Michael Borden.

�Two key areas we talked about going into the game were keeping them off

the offensive glass and pressuring the basketball. We didn�t do a very good

job of forcing turnovers in the first half, plus they hurt us on the

offensive boards,� said Woods.

Steven Sexton added 11 points in the third frame and the Cards used a

13-11 tally to push to a 43-40 advantage. The Trojans were able to stay

close with an 11-4 run to end the quarter, paced by the 7 points of Sam

Jenkins.

Wayne County converted on 4 of 7 field goals in the final quarter, to

offset a 4 of 11 effort from the charity-stripe en route to claiming a 56-46

win. Monticello finished the game just 3 of 14 from the field and 0 for 3

from the free throw line in the final eight minutes.

Monticello�s Zeb Davis contributed 4 points, while Ronnie Ellis and Luke

Burton finished with 3 and 2 points respectively, to round-out the six

Trojans in the scoring column.

Wayne County�s W.K. Allen and Cody Decker tallied 2 points each, while

Dustin Wells chipped-in with 1 point, to round-out the six Cards in the

scoring margin.

A review of the stats shows Monticello shot 18 of 50 overall for 36

percent and tallied on 4 of 13 3-pointers for 31 percent. The Trojans made 6

of 14 free throws for 43 percent and totaled 5 assists with 5 steals against

13 turnovers.

Wayne County, which claimed a 39-32 rebound edge, connected on 21 of 51

field goal attempts for 41 percent and marked on 7 of 21 3-pointers for 33

percent. The winners converted on 7 of 15 free throws for 47 percent and

totaled 8 assists with 12 steals and 9 turnovers.

The win improved the Cards to 68-23 all-time against the Trojans and

marked their 25th straight win in the series.

Both teams advanced into this week�s 12th Region Tournament at Lincoln

County High School. Wayne County faced Boyle County on Monday night. The

Rebels own a 73-56 regular season win over the Cards.

�Boyle County always plays good defense and they are always very

physical. Even before this season I think they are the one team in the

region that has matched our physical style of play. A big challenge in this

game will be rebounding, that�s an area they just dominated us in, in our

earlier game,� said Woods.

Monticello faces Danville on Tuesday night in the second night of the

opening round. The teams met earlier in the season with the Ads claiming a

64-45 win.

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