Trinity pulls away from Pulaski County, advances to second round of Sweet 16

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After a neck-and-neck first half, Trinity figured out its recipe for success: Andrae Vasser.

Thanks to Vasser’s game-high 19 points and the Shamrocks’ 52.8 percent shooting clip, No. 6 Trinity toppled the Maroons on Thursday night in Rupp Arena and will advance to the Sweet 16 quarterfinals on Friday.

The two-time state champions hadn’t been back to the tournament since winning it all in 2019 — the Shamrock Revenge Tour is officially on.

Vasser, the senior, scored 10 points in the first half, but (nearly) doubled that in the third quarter alone with nine. At the final buzzer, Vasser had 19 points on 7-10 (70%) shooting from the field, including 3-3 from three.

Despite being the only player on his team in double-digits, Vasser wasn’t the only one to make an impact offensively. Lance Chandler and Alex Johnson had nine and eight points, respectively, on a combined 6-10 (60%) from the field. Johnson shot 5-6 from the free throw line, marking five of his team’s eight makes.

Pulaski County, on the other hand, was in the game from the very beginning. The Maroons were down by two at the half, but with eight lead changes in the first half alone, it was anyone’s game. While the Maroons didn’t come out on top offensively, they did win the battle on the boards, outrebounding Trinity 25-22. The teams were about as close as it could get statistically. They both had 12 turnovers, Trinity scored 28 points in the paint compared to Pulaski’s 26, and both teams had five steals.

Pulaski County’s Will Blankenship was the only Maroon in double-digits, finishing with 14 points on 5-11 (45%) from the field while going 1-2 (50%) from three. Only four more players from Pulaski made a basket, however. Zak Anderson (9), Carson Fraley (8), Gavin Cook (6), and Foster Fraley (6) were the only other Maroons to put some points on the board.

As a unit, Pulaski County shot only 16-42 (38.1%) from the field and just 2-11 (18.2%) from the perimeter. They did, however, make one more free throw than the Shamrocks, totaling nine on the night. Despite their efforts, the Maroons ended their season at Rupp Arena on Thursday.

FINAL — Trinity pulls away from Pulaski County in the first round of the KHSAA Sweet 16, and takes down the Maroons to move on to the next round.

Trinity 50 | Pulaski 43 | FINAL
— Katie Hutchison (@KHutchisonKSR) March 21, 2024