Fast start, gutsy finish lifts Lexington Catholic over Douglass in 11th Region boys semis
It might have looked easy at first, but No. 2 Lexington Catholic knew its 20-point first-half lead over Frederick Douglass in Saturday’s boys 11th Region Tournament semifinals wouldn’t last.
Douglass, the defending 11th Region champion ranked No. 20 in the final Dave Cantrall Ratings of the regular season, cut its deficit to 43-39 on DeMarcus’ Surratt’s 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter.
But Lexington Catholic didn’t flinch. And the player who had been a huge part of its run to a big lead had an answer.
“They came out and made some shots, so we just had to bounce back,” said Rowen Williams, whose 3-pointer from the right baseline, seconds after Surratt’s bucket, sapped the Broncos rally and helped the Knights go on to a 60-50 victory in the first of the two boys region semifinals Saturday afternoon at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School.
“Johnny (Reinhart) and Tyler (Doyle) get all the accolades and people want to zero in on them, but Rowen is as much a part of the heart and soul of this team as those two,” Lexington Catholic coach Brandon Salsman said. “He’s awesome.”
Rowen Williams, a 6-foot-4 senior whose unusual first name has been misspelled on LexCath’s official KHSAA roster his entire career, led the Knights with 19 points and 15 rebounds. He made 5 of 6 from the field in the first half.
Scorekeepers take note: It’s spelled with an “e.”
“He’s the dirty man for us. He does everything,” LexCath’s Tyler Doyle said. “Him fighting down there in the paint, especially at his height, is very, very impressive. He’s a big part of our success.”
The win advanced Lexington Catholic (32-2) to Tuesday’s 11th Region championship game where it will face No. 1 Great Crossing, an 85-64 winner over Madison Southern in the other semifinal. It also avenged last season’s heartbreaking 43-41 loss to Douglass in the region finals.
“When you’ve got nine seniors and they know what’s at stake, you’re going to get a lot of heart and effort and hustle and that’s what we got there in the first half for sure,” Salsman said.
Lexington Catholic shot 60% from the field in the first half and got a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Doyle for a 33-13 lead going into the locker room that got the Knights Dungeon student section to full roar.
“It was huge for us,” Doyle said of his 3-pointer, “but I think it might have boosted our confidence a little too much.”
Douglass responded in the second half with a 26-10 run that was capped by Surratt’s 3-pointer seconds into the fourth quarter. But after Williams’ answer, the Broncos (21-13) could get no closer than five points the rest of the way.
“Credit to Douglass, they’ve been injured all year long, fighting sickness and everything else. All the prognosticators in the world picked them to win this game and rightfully so,” Salsman said. “They were top five in the state in preseason. They were playing their best basketball and they came out and punched us in the face in that second half.”
Doyle and Miller Williams also reached double figures for Lexington Catholic with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
Armelo Boone scored 14 for Douglass. Surratt finished with 12. The Broncos ultimately could not overcome making just 4 of 23 shots in the first half.
“This is probably the worst team to get off to a slow start against … but we just had a seal on the basket. We couldn’t hit anything,” Douglass coach Stephon Harris said. “I’m proud of my guys. We fought. … We had chances to get back in it, we just had a couple of late defensive breakdowns at the end.”
Next up: the region championship. Lexington Catholic lost to 58-50 to Great Crossing on a neutral court on Jan. 27. The Knights were undermanned that day with a couple of players out, including Rowen Williams. Still, they led by as many as nine points late in the third quarter of that game until a furious Warhawks rally. It will likely take their best game yet to knock off No. 1.
“I’m confident we can win every single game, and I’m really excited for Tuesday,” Williams said. “I think it’s going to be a fun game.”
Tuesday
Boys 11th Region Tournament championship
At Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
7 p.m.: No. 1 Great Crossing (33-1) vs. No. 2 Lexington Catholic (32-2)
Tickets: $8 via gofan.com.
Streaming: glicod.com
This story was originally published March 10, 2024 at 9:36 AM.
