Eagles pound Bombers to advance

One year removed from a stunning defeat in the first round of the Third District tournament, Graves County coach Allan Hatcher reminded his charges of that low feeling of not reaching the First Region tournament.

“Sure I did,” Hatcher said. “We brought that up and I wanted them to remember that feeling of that bus ride home.”

Graves County took out those frustrations against the team that sent them home early last season and denied their entry to the First Region tournament for the first time in school history.

Sophomore Randon Cavette manhandled the post and sophomore sharp-shooter Zack Sims connected on 5-of-6 three-pointers as the Eagles hammered Ballard Memorial 65-26 Tuesday night at the Eagles Nest in the first round of the Third District tournament.

Cavette recorded a pair of steals that resulted in one-handed slam dunks and scored 14 of his game-high 25 points in the first half alone. Cavette also led the Eagles with 10 rebounds.

In the first quarter, Cavette scored seven consecutive points in the paint. And it was much of the same in the second period for Cavette, who scored seven more consecutive points which were capped off by a steal and a dunk as the Eagles led 20-4 midway through the second frame.

Sims poured in 16 points and dished out three assists. Senior point guard Josh Frick handed out eight assists had no turnovers for the Eagles who won their 22nd outing.

“We’re more balanced than what people think,” Hatcher said.

The Eagles will face the winner of the Mayfield/St. Mary game Friday night for the district championship.

“It will be a very important game for us,” Hatcher said of the district title contest. “The region is wide open this year.”

Graves County was 59% from the field.

Arguably the worst team in the region, Ballard Memorial shot 23% from the floor on 13-of-43 attempts.

Eagles down Lakers 45-34

Graves County improved to a First Region best 19-4 with a 45-34 win over regional power Calloway County Friday night.

And the Eagles did it with defense in the second half.

In the third quarter, all five starters each had a deflection as Graves County mounted a comeback. Randon Cavette gave the Eagles their first lead of the game since early in the opening quarter with a drive to the basket and a 28-27 lead.

The Eagles sank 7-of-8 free throws in the final minute of play to seal the win.

Cavette led Graves County in scoring with 13 points and eight rebounds. Zack Sims scored 10 for the Eagles as well.

Graves County hosts Christian County on Friday night.

Sims leads Eagles
with career-high 21 points in win

Sophomore Zack Sims scored a career-high 21 points as Graves County downed Hickman County 55-47 Tuesday night in Clinton.

Sims drained five three-pointers for the Eagles who jumped out to a 17-4 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Graves County cruised to a 27-11 halftime advantage.

But the Eagles would have to fend off the Falcons who made a run in the second half to claim the 12-point win. Hickman County clamped down defensively and went on a 21-9 to trim Graves County’s lead to 36-32.

The Eagles shut the door on the Falcons in the final frame from the free throw stripe.

Graves County was 17-of-20 from the charity line.

On Friday night, the Eagles travel to First Region stronghold Calloway County.

Pilots rally to down Cardinals

Fulton County went on an 18-6 run in the fourth quarter to squash Mayfield’s bid for an upset Friday night.

The Pilots nipped the Cardinals 50-43.

Down 19-12 at the end of the first quarter, the Cardinals turned up their defensive pressure and limited Fulton County to two second quarter points as the contest was knotted 21-21 at the half.

In the third quarter, Mayfield outscored the Pilots 16-11 to take a 37-32 lead into the final frame.

Seniors Justin Shoales and Tienne England led the Cardinals with 14 points each.

Fulton County’s Whitney Hendrix led all scorers with 20 points.

Mayfield hosts Ballard Memorial Thursday night in a Third District battle.

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