George Rogers Clark overwhelms Simon Kenton 66-40; advances to state championship

Last season, George Rogers Clark (32-2) lost the state championship 65-60 to Sacred Heart, and with a 66-40 win over Simon Kenton (33-3) Saturday afternoon at Rupp Arena in the Girls Basketball Sweet 16, they have a chance to hoist the trophy that slipped from their grasp just a year ago.

GRC used a dominant opening quarter to soar to victory. Whether it was scoring in transition, letting their offensive sets develop in the half-court, or their high-pressure defense, the Lady Cardinals built a 23-6 lead while shooting 7-10 from the field and 5-8 from three, including a Teigh Yeast buzzer-beater three. On defense, their full-court pressure and trapping forced three turnovers and 2-10 shooting from the Lady Pioneers.

“We played like our hands on fire,” said GRC coach Robbie Graham.

Simon Kenton coach Jeff Stowers noted how the constant pressure was tough on their offense, and they weren’t moving the ball diagonally to successfully break the press.

In the second frame, GRC fell back to Earth, shooting 33% from the field, a stark contrast from the previous quarter. After another trey from Yeast — the Lady Cardinals’ only of the quarter — it gave them a first-half high 20-point lead, but Simon Kenton started to claw back with a 7-2 run, eventually landing at a 31-15 halftime score in GRC’s favor.

Yeast, 10th Region co-player of the year, led the way for the Lady Cardinals’ balanced scoring attack with 10 points at the break, including three splashes. Four others had at least four points. GRC dominated the team assist total 10-2, with the Lady Pioneers also surrendering nine turnovers.

The Lady Cardinals got the second half rolling with a 23-second 6-0 run, building a 22-point lead, but just like the first half, their momentum waned, going into the fourth with a 45-26 lead.

GRC’s leading scorer, Kennedy Stamper, doubled her first-half point total in the third quarter alone, notching eight points and three steals in the quarter. She finished with 18 points and five steals.

“Getting up in the passing lanes and being super aggressive pressuring the ball,” said the junior guard. “We have played them prior…we know their offense and defense how they’re run, so we knew it was going to be fast-paced, up-and-down, super aggressive.”

The fourth quarter picked up the pace, it being the highest-scoring quarter between both teams. But GRC can play that game too, ballooning their lead to 66-40 by the final buzzer.

Simon Kenton, the No. 1 team according to RPI, was undefeated against Kentucky opponents coming into this one, but haven’t run into a team like the Lady Cardinals since the preseason, who are promptly ranked at No. 2 in the RPI.

Outside of Stamper, GRC had three other scorers in double figures: Jylin Edmonson (14), Yeast (12), who also added three steals, and Kyleigh Chestnut (10).

“We feel like that’s one thing where you want to wear a team down mentally and physically,” said Graham on his team’s depth.

Simon Kenton only produced two scorers in double figures, with their season-leading scorer Brunei Pernell and Bella Ober pouring in 12 each.

The Lady Cardinals’ keys were volume shooting — getting in 13 more FG attempts than the Lady Pioneers, which resulted in eight more made FGs and five more made threes — and dominating the assist-turnover ratio, as GRC notched 15 assists to only nine turnovers and forced 18 of them.

State Championship

George Rogers Clark will face Assumption in the state championship on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m, as the Rockets defeated Taylor County 48-29 in the other semifinal match. In Assumption’s first Sweet 16 appearance since 2007, they reached the state championship.

Assumption defeated the Lady Cardinals in triple overtime 61-56 on Jan. 8. This gives GRC multiple revenge factors to hoist the ultimate prize, in a game that will feature a first-time KHSAA state champion.

“Every second of rest is going to matter,” said Graham. “It’s going to be a 32-minute war. 365 days ago we expected to be back in this position tonight.

GRC rolled through the first two rounds, defeating North Laurel 55-46, then Franklin-Simpson 69-34. Simon Kenton beat Ashland Blazer 70-61 and Owensboro Catholic 63-50 on their path to the final four, the Lady Pioneers’ furthest run in school history.