[GetChili]

Warriors advance to semis by downing Lincoln Co., 51-42
By MICHAEL CHILDERS, CJ Correspondent
Commonwealth Journal

Somerset — Survive and advance.

That’s exactly what the Southwestern Warriors did last night, as they survived a pesky Lincoln County bunch by a score of 51-42 in the opening round of the Boys 12th Region Tournament at Pulaski County High School.

It wasn’t the prettiest of games for the Warriors, but first-year Southwestern head coach Steve Wright will certainly take it, because all that matters is that the ‘Blue and Orange’ are advancing in postseason play.

The Warriors got off to a sluggish start, as the Patriots of Lincoln County took an early lead that Southwestern would eventually overcome with huge run in the second period.

“When you get into a tournament, you’re not going to play well every night,” began Wright, who saw his club move to 25-8 with the nine-point victory over the Patriots. More importantly, Southwestern earned a spot in the semifinals of the regional tournament, where they will face West Jessamine.

“Some nights you’ve got to get through it and that’s what we did tonight. We didn’t play great, but we got it done and that’s all that matters. I think we’ll play better on Monday night.”

Paced by 10 points by Carllewis Cummins, Jeff Jackson’s Patriots ran out to a 12-7 first period lead over Southwestern. Other than a basket from Luke Hill, Cummins was the only scoring threat that Lincoln County had in the opening frame.

However, the Warriors would use a 16-3 run in the second quarter of play to take a 24-17 halftime lead. Southwestern would outscore the Patriots, 17-5, in the second eight-minute session.

A basket from Robby Lewis would catapult a 6-0 Southwestern run just under three minutes into the quarter. Isaiah Collier would come up with a score and Daulton Marlow got two free-throws to get Southwestern within two points at 14-12.

Jacob Conway knocked down a three-pointer to widen the gap to five points at 17-12. That trey from Conway with 3:24 left until halftime would be the final basket of the half for the Patriots.

After Conway’s score, the Warriors would go on a 12-0 run to grab a seven-point halftime lead. A pair of treys from Collier and Marlow got some momentum on Southwestern’s side and really got the team going after such a rough start to begin the regional tourney game.

Within the final minute, Justin Edwards scored four points to put the ‘Blue and Orange’ ahead 24-17 at the break.

The Warriors hoops coach was pleased with the way his team kept fighting and fighting after such a slow start to the ballgame.

“We got off to a real slow start,” stated Wright, “We just didn’t play well early in the game. The most important thing is that the attitude of our team was great. They kept fighting and kept scrapping. There was no panic in our guys’ eyes, they stay focused.”

“Tonight, when we were struggling, Dalton (Marlow), Isaiah (Collier), and (Justin) Schulz hit those big three’s,” continued the veteran coach. “(Justin) Edwards was solid going to the basket and Justin Epperson was tremendous on the boards.”

The Warriors would outscore Lincoln County by two points at 9-7 in the third frame. Both squads would trade baskets all quarter long. The score heading into the fourth and final quarter of play was 33-24, in favor of Wright and the Warriors.

Both Lincoln County and Southwestern would score 18 points apiece in the final frame. However, the Patriots weren’t going to go away, as they made Southwestern sweat a little bit.

In the final session, Southwestern led by as much as 11 points and as little as five points. Lincoln County cut the Warrior lead to five points at 45-38 behind the hot hand of Cummins, who tallied 11 points alone in the fourth period.

Despite the 11-point frame from Cummins, the Patriots would never get as close as five points, as the Warriors would make their free-throws to hold on for the victory.

Cummins poured in a game-high 21 points for the Patriots. In fact, Cummins was the only Lincoln County player to reach double figures. The next closest Patriot player was Conway, who finished with eight points.

Edwards, who was nothing short of clutch in last season’s regional tournament, tallied a club-high 15 points for the Warriors. Six of Edwards’ 15 points came from the charity stripe.

Marlow came off of the bench to chime in with seven points. David Kapinga, Lewis, and Collier all scored five points each.

The Warriors, now 25-8 on the year, will face West Jessamine in the semifinals on Monday evening. The Colts of West Jessamine downed pre-season tournament favorite Pulaski County last night on their home floor by a final tally of 73-66.

Southwestern defeated the Colts in their only meeting this season pretty easily, on January 24, by a score of 79-50. Much of the West Jessamine team was sidelined with injuries - three starters to be exact - in that 29-point loss to the Warriors, so expect a much closer game on Monday night.

Boyle County and East Jessamine will start Monday’s semifinal twin bill off, as that game will start at 6 p.m. In the nightcap, Southwestern and West Jessamine will square-off at approximately at 7:30 p.m. Both games will be played at Pulaski County High School.

http://somerset-kentucky.com/localsports...aski-73-66