On Friday, Feb. 14, the Great Crossing Warhawks defeated the Cardinals of South Laurel in Georgetown.
Great Crossing had defeated George Rogers Clark prior to this matchup, which extended its win streak to 15 and its record to 23-4. South Laurel was looking to bounce back from its previous loss at Harlan County, which dropped its record to 18-6.
South Laurel was heavily reliant on the three ball to open the game as three of its first four shot attempts came from beyond the arch. On the other hand, the Warhawks tried to use Malachi Moreno’s height as an advantage down below in the paint. Moreno started his night out with a 2-3 shooting performance from the paint.
Each team started the game by knocking down their starting 3-point attempts within the first minute and a half of the game. It was a back-and-forth game in the opening eight minutes, but the Warhawks ended the last minute and a half with a 5-0 run to take the early 16-12 lead.
To start the second quarter, the Cardinals started out shooting 3-3 and took the lead back. The Warhawks switched to a 2-3 zone, but it still wasn’t enough as the Cardinals seemed to make just about every shot they put up. The half ended with a Cardinals’ lead of 34- 28 and a 22-point second quarter performance.
South Laurel’s Jordan Mabe led the team with 15 points going into halftime.
In the opening minutes of quarter three, the Warhawks came out with a six-point run before the Cardinals finally answered back at the six-minute mark with a run of their own. Each team continued to play their starters, but the Cardinals still maintained a 47-45 lead going into the last eight minutes of regulation.
The fourth quarter was just as intense, as the Cardinals were able to extend their lead to nine points at the 5:02 mark.
As time ticked away, Great Crossing was able to take back the lead with 1:22 left in the game off a Moreno dunk. A late turnover from the Cardinals would lead to an easy bucket for the Warhawks to hold a three-point lead before eventually fouling, which gifted the Cardinals two free throws and a one-point deficit with 16.8 seconds left in the ball game.
With nothing left do but foul, the Cardinals would send Vince Dawson to try and push the lead to three. He made both free throws, which put the score at 61 for Great Crossing to South Laurel’s 58. The last second shot by Kaden Taylor wouldn’t fall and the Warhawks won the game, extending their win streak to 16.
Mabe for South Laurel led the team with 23 points, one assist, one rebound and two blocks.
Colton Rawlings followed with 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
For Great Crossing, Vince Dawson was the scoring leader with 20 points. He also had two rebounds and five assists. Moreno followed with 16 points, 10 rebounds and four assists.
The Warhawks are back in action on Tuesday, Feb. 18, as they travel to play at Walton-Verona at 7:30 p.m. The Cardinals will host Jeffersontown at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 15.
