Bluebirds Pull Away from Indians |
| PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior forward Jack Delagrange (left) digs in defensively against Madison Central on Friday. The Bluebirds turned in their best defensive effort of the season in a 57-44 over Madison Central at Harrison County on Friday. |
So instead, Highlands put together its best defensive effort of the season scoring-wise in a 57-44 win over the Madison Central Indians (2-5) at the Mike Reitz Classic at Harrison County on Friday. The Bluebirds stayed undefeated at 7-0 with the victory.
Madison Central has lost five in a row. It did not help that junior wing Braeden Ray was not able to play for a second straight game. Ray is averaging 15.2 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.
But the Indians have had stability on the sideline in Head Coach Allen Feldhaus, Jr. Feldhaus took over the Madison Central program before the 1993-94 season. He came into the season ranked 13th in Kentucky boys basketball history and has an all-time record of 632-375, which includes a state championship in 2013.
The Bluebirds finished with 11 steals that led to key transition points and 21 rebounds. Highlands junior point guard Sam Vinson again led the way with 19 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Highlands senior guard Jacob Brass added four rebounds, two assists and three steals.
"I thought we did a great job defensively of really sitting in the gaps and providing help and using our full-court pressure to wear them down," said Kevin Listerman, Highlands Head Coach. "We didn't get a ton of turnovers. But we got some at key times to stretch the lead almost at the end of every quarter so I was very, very pleased with our defensive effort. I couldn't be more happy with as patient as we were. (Coach Feldhaus) wasn't going to let us get out and let it be a track meet so we had to match their intensity, their physicality and their patience. I thought we met all three of those."
Madison Central tried trapping Vinson at various spots of the floor. But he wound up scoring on some back cuts to the rim. The Bluebirds found other ways to score after the Indians stopped the back-cuts.
Seven different Bluebirds scored in the game. Junior forward Luke Muller and senior guard Hunter Ahlfeld scored 10 points each.
"We preach staying aggressive," Listerman said. "I think the guys feed off Sam, but we also have some very aggressive seniors in Hunter and Jacob. They've done a great job leading our group this year. We're on attack mode. We're trying to score. But the best part is we talk about turning down good to get great. (Friday) was a fantastic example of that. We turned down some shots knowing it was a slower-paced game. We were able to handle things and pull away in the fourth quarter."
Highlands made 25-of-51 shots for 49 percent including 24-of-36 from two-point range for 67 percent and six free throws. The Bluebirds hit just 1-of-15 three-point tries for just seven percent.
Highlands senior forward Jack Delagrange made his return a week ago against Bracken County from a football injury. Delagrange scored seven points.
"I'm just trying to play my part," Delagrange said. "Overall, we have great chemistry right now. We have to keep this rolling. We're really good at taking care of the ball right now. We knew where the opening is and when it's going to be. We're playing unselfish, which is good. We just need to keep it that way."
Highlands took advantage of 17 Madison Central turnovers. Freshman Trey Skaggs had 11 points to lead the Indians with junior small forward Kole Browne scoring eight.
Highlands led the entire game. The Bluebirds stretched the lead to as high as 18 points in the second half.
The Indians shot 46 percent from the field and had 12 assists on 18 field goals. The Indians made 4-of-16 three-point shots for 25 percent and 4-of-7 free throws for 57 percent.
Highlands plays the Augusta Panthers (6-3) back at Harrison County in the championship game on Saturday. Game time is approximately 3 p.m.
Basketball, Girls:
Ashland Blazer 55, Highlands 46:
The Bluebirds (3-2) dropped the first game against the Kittens (7-1) in the first game of the Traditional Bank Holiday Classic at Lexington Catholic.
Senior guard Piper Macke led Highlands with 19 points making 8-of-10 free throws. The Bluebirds made 17-of-35 shots for 49 percent including 4-of-14 from three-point range for 29 percent. Macke took all 10 free throws for the Bluebirds.
Highlands also had 22 rebounds, 18 fouls, eight assists, 17 turnovers, one blocked shot and five steals. Senior guard Maggie Hinegardner had three assists for the Bluebirds.
Junior guard Carley Cullop and senior guard Julie Parker led Ashland with 19 points each. The Kittens made 17-of-40 shots for 43 percent, 10-of-20 three-point shots for 50 percent and 11-of-14 free throws for 79 percent. The Kittens also had 22 rebounds, 11 fouls, 12 assists, 11 turnovers and nine steals.
Highlands plays the Webster County Lady Trojans (2-4) in the smaller Alumni Gym at 3:15 p.m. Saturday.
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