GEORGETOWN — What a week it's been for the Henry Clay boys' basketball team.
On Tuesday night, the No. 13 Blue Devils beat No. 5 Madison Central, handing the Indians their first loss of the season.
On Friday night, Henry Clay ended a six-year, 17-game losing streak to Scott County, beating the No. 2 team in the state on its home floor.
Devils sophomore Christen Cunningham, who played for Scott County last year, hit 10 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter to finish off the 63-59 upset.
"It feels great," Cunningham said after leading Henry Clay with 19 points. "They thought we were too young and couldn't beat them, but we came in to their home court and knocked them off."
The Devils, whose starting lineup includes three sophomores and a junior, notched their 10th victory in a row to extend their longest winning streak in seven seasons.
"Our guys showed some growth to beat the two teams we beat this week," Coach Daniel Brown said. "It lets our guys know they can compete at a high level, and that's all we're trying to do."
Sophomores Trey Grundy (12 points, nine rebounds) and Jordan Green (12 points, five rebounds) played big for Henry Clay, as did junior Darien Tichenor (eight points, 13 rebounds). Seniors Wes Kimball and Alex Blackburn combined for 12 points.
Scott County, which had a 14-game winning streak snapped, got in trouble when senior star Tamron Manning sat out the last six minutes of the first half with three fouls.
Henry Clay took advantage of his absence and took a 29-20 lead at halftime.
Manning and senior standout Isaiah Ivey rallied Scott County in the second half, and the hosts edged ahead 42-41 in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter.
But Henry Clay answered the challenge with an 8-0 run that gave it a 49-42 lead.
Scott County closed the gap to 50-48, but it could get no closer as Cunningham got the ball in his hands and made it to the free-throw line time after time and cashed in.
The Cards tried to come back, but their shooting went cold and they were limited to one shot by Henry Clay's strong rebounding.
"That was the No. 1 key — rebounding," Brown said.
Ivey (17 points) and Manning (15 points, 15 rebounds) led Scott County, but they were a combined 12-for-37 shooting from the field.
As a team the Cards shot 30 percent (20-for-66).
Scott County Coach Billy Hicks said Manning's first-half foul trouble "left us struggling, but our other guys should've competed better."
Hicks thought Henry Clay took the fight to the Cards.
"Henry Clay played harder and better than us, and did a great job getting to the foul line," he said.
Hicks also thought the Devils might have been more motivated, considering the long losing streak to Scott County. "We wanted it bad, but I think Henry Clay may have wanted it a little more."
Brown was gracious in victory.
"Coach Hicks got his 800th win (last week) and I've always watched his teams play with a lot of pride. It's an honor to get a win against him."
As for the Devils' accomplishment of beating two of the best teams in the state in a span of four days, Brown said, "It's probably as good a week as you could have."
HENRY CLAY (19-6) — Cunningham 4-12 10-14 19, Grundy 5-8 2-2 12, Kimball 2-8 0-0 4, Green 5-13 1-2 12, Tichenor 4-8 0-0 8, Blackburn 4-5 0-0 8. Totals 24-54 13-18 63.
SCOTT COUNTY (21-4) — Ivey 8-19 1-1 17, Manning 4-18 7-10 15, Gilbert 2-9 4-4 8, Harris 4-6 2-2 10, Richardson 2-8 2-2 7, Haddix 0-5 2-4 2, Bryant 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 20-66 18-23 59.
Henry Clay 13 16 12 22—63
Scott County 11 9 20 19—59
