White, Greer and Maggard Holiday Classic Semifinal Results
Four of Kentucky’s top six teams came together Tuesday afternoon to battle in the semifinals of the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic. What appeared to be two potential classic matchups turned into two one-sided beatdowns.
Here’s how it happened:
No. 1 Ballard def. No. 4 Lexington Catholic 74-65
The Bruins asserted their dominance from the opening tip. Starting the game out on a 10-0 run, Lexington Catholic simply couldn’t keep up with the No. 32 team in America.
Ballard kept the train rolling the entire first half, heading into the locker room at halftime leading 39-22. Gabe Sisk led the Bruins with 13 points at the break while Kaden Stanton and Keno Hayden combined for 13 as well.
Lexington Catholic traded buckets with Ballard throughout the third. The only problem—they were already trailing by 17 by the time they found their rhythm.
The Knights cut the lead all the way down to six, but the deficit was too much for Lexington Catholic to overcome, which eventually fell to Ballard 74-65.
“Offensively we were pretty efficient,” Ballard head coach Chris Renner said. “[In the] second half we got the lead—we just started trading baskets and then we didn’t hit some shots. In the second half they got really hot, I think they had 14 threes; a lot of credit to them.”
LexCath went 14-29 (48 percent) from deep and was led by Jack Gohmann’s 22 points. John Reinhart and Hudson Sparks scored 15 each, as well.
Gabe Sisk finished with a team-high 21 points and six rebounds. Maker Bar scored 13 points (3-3 from deep) while Keno Hayden dropped seven, who countered his quiet scoring night with seven assists.
Ballard is now bound for the championship of the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic Wednesday at 7 p.m.
No. 2 George Rogers Clark def. No. 6 North Laurel 77-64
GRC opened the game up with a 14–4 run and had the advantage heading into the second period. A 12-2 run by North Laurel erased the Cardinal edge midway through the second. The Jaguars took the lead thanks to a four-point play by Reed Sheppard.
GRC kept the edge at the break thanks to a combined 23 points from Jerone Morton and Sam Parrish. Reed Sheppard had 12 points at halftime to lead the Jaguars as well.
“I think I played well—my teammates helped me,” Morton said. “They helped me get in the groove. They gave me the ball, they found where I was and they trusted me and I was just making plays.”
Morton took over in the third quarter as his Cardinals took a 59-49 lead into the final eight minutes. GRC’s depth was just too much for North Laurel down the stretch in a tournament like the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic.
Three-pointers on consecutive possessions for Morton extended the Cardinal lead to 15 with six minutes to go. There would be no magical comeback like the classic against Pleasure Ridge Park on Monday—North Laurel would fall to GRC 77-64.
“Aden [Slone] being a good point guard that he is—dribbling through the gaps and found me and I hit him,” Morton said about the three’s.
Morton and Sheppard scored 28 and 27 points, respectively. Morton’s stellar performance was contagious for Parrish as the junior scored 19 points as well.
Ballard will face GRC in the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic championship game Wednesday night at 7 p.m. while Lexington Catholic will take on North Laurel in the third-place game at 5 p.m.
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