Reed Sheppard drops 50 points in second round of WGM Holiday Classic
North Laurel was dead in the water with just a few minutes left in Monday night’s game.
During second-round action at the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic, the Jaguars were slowly losing their grip on the game. Despite leading Pleasure Ridge Park by five at the halftime break, North Laurel found itself down by eight with as few as 90 seconds left in the game.
Then Reed Sheppard happened.
The class of 2023 Kentucky commit put the entire weight of North Laurel on his back. The 6-foot-3 guard finished with a season-high 50 points on 15-25 shooting, 4-8 from distance, and 16-18 from the free-throw line. Sheppard had just 14 points at the half but poured in 26 more throughout the fourth quarter and overtime. He added five rebounds, three assists, five blocks, four steals, and five turnovers to his stat line while playing all 38 possible minutes.
He also did this in front of a packed gym at Lexington Catholic High School…
PRP was in control down the stretch, too. Considering high school basketball doesn’t use a shot clock, the Panthers were burning time whenever possible in the closing minutes of regulation. Once North Laurel did get the ball, Sheppard was forced to score and do so quickly. PRP didn’t play its best ball either, coughing up some costly turnovers and missing a few untimely free throws. The door was never fully closed for Sheppard and co., and a player of his caliber will always find a way to break it right down.
Down five with just 25 seconds remaining, Sheppard drilled a three from the top of the key before forcing a turnover on the ensuing in-bounds play. Out of the timeout, Sheppard cut right by his defender at midcourt as he strolled to the rim for an easy bucket that tied the contest at 82.
Once the game went into overtime, North Laurel possessed all the momentum necessary to seal the victory. A massive triple from Jaguars guard Clay Sizemore (off a Sheppard assist) put North Laurel ahead by three early in the extra frame–and that was all she wrote.
What shouldn’t be overlooked, however, were the 23 points on 8-13 shooting from Sheppard’s North Laurel teammate, Ryan Davidson. Time and time again this season, Davidson has made big plays as the Jaguars undersized center. Monday night was no different.
Even more impressive though were the 39 points dropped by PRP’s junior point guard Zamareon McCown, who went head-to-head with Sheppard all evening long and came out on top more than a few times. Despite his 5-foot-10 stature, the shifty ball handler showed unbelievable poise and hit a few big shots for the Panthers. His playmaking had North Laurel lost. McCown won’t earn a check in the win column, but he sure did make a name for himself on a big stage.
Sheppard continued to make big shots and hit his free throws as North Laurel moves onto the semifinals. That matchup will tipoff on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. EST back inside Lexington Catholic. No. 6 North Laurel will face No. 3T George Rogers Clark in the second of the two semifinals. No. 1 Ballard and No. 3T Lexington Catholic will tipoff at 6 p.m. EST.
Four of the six best teams in the state playing back-to-back? Yes, please.
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