A Second District showdown between McCracken County and St. Mary ended with the Mustangs on top 82-50, an 18-7 run in the third quarter breaking open this game. With the win, McCracken extends their winning streak to 11, remaining undefeated in both district and region play.
The final score was not reflective of the first half, as St. Mary’s defense gave the Mustangs some trouble early on. Scoring was stalled for the first few minutes as both teams attempted to figure out a game plan to combat the physical defense.
Jack Griffith netted 10 points in the first half for St. Mary, and was the driving force behind the Vikings staying close. McCracken’s Miles Woodfork and Aaron Adams also had double-digit first halves, keeping their team’s lead at 32-23 at halftime.
Coming out of the break, the Mustangs did a much better job of spreading the ball across the floor. All five of their starters tallied multiple baskets in the third, an 18-7 run extending their lead to 20 later in the period. 25 points to St. Mary’s 13 in the period ultimately broke the game open and let McCracken speed up the pace to their liking, finishing out the game ahead by 32, their point total at halftime.
“We amped it up a little bit defensively, and the ball moved around for us better in the second half offensively,” Coach Roberts said. “I didn’t think the ball moved very well at all for us in the first half. They caught us off guard a little bit by playing man to man. They’ve been doing that lately, but we didn’t think they’d do it to us, and they did a good job of it, so hats off to St. Mary.”
McCracken continues to pile up these games with multiple players scoring double figures, and Monday night’s contest was no different. Four different Mustangs eclipsed 10 points, Miles Woodfork leading the way with 20. Aaron Adams tallied 18, while Garrett Miller and Owen Grogan both finished with 10.
“Usually what we get is four or five guys in double figures, and once that ball started moving, everybody was able to eat a little bit,” Roberts said. “We like to have that balance, and tonight we had that.”
Freshman Jack Griffith led St. Mary with 14 points, half of which came in the first quarter after hitting a three early on. Point guard Griffin Mayes finished with 11, and Ja’Cobi Nichols tallied nine on 50% shooting from the field.
After winning six in a row, St. Mary’s loss puts them at an even. 500, 12-12 on the year.
With just five game left in the regular season, the Vikings look to even the score against Paducah Tilghman on Tuesday. Following that last district matchup of the regular season, the Vikings will play three straight games at home, the first being on Friday against Ballard Memorial.
McCracken is on the hunt to increase their win streak to 12 on Tuesday on the road against Murray High. Coach Roberts said that game will be a test against a top region opponent, and they will have to bring their best to get past the Tigers on their home court.
“Murray’s a good basketball team. For them to go to Marshall and win, that raises a lot of eyebrows. They’re right there in the mix, and our guys have to be ready to play in a hostile environment. It’s going to be a tough one, a four quarter game, and we’re going to have to fight and claw for everything that we get over there.”