‘What a second-half effort.’ Magoffin ramps up defense to win first-ever Sweet 16 game.
After what head coach Scott Castle called a “terrible first half” of basketball, Magoffin County flipped the switch defensively in the second half of its 54-47 first-round victory over Perry County Central in the 2024 UK HealthCare Boys’ Sweet 16.
“We kind of come in and regrouped the second half and played the way that were capable of playing,” Castle said after his school made its first-ever state tournament appearance. “Played with energy and played as a unit. Proud of these kids before we even arrived here. Proud of the resiliency that they’ve had going into postseason. And man, what a second-half effort. I mean, a total, total team win.”
The Hornets (22-13) trailed for nearly 17 minutes of the game, including by six at the half, and did not take a firm lead until the fourth quarter. In the first half, the Hornets allowed the Commodores to shoot 45% from the field, and Magoffin County’s leading rebounders, sophomore Walker Russell and senior Zane Whitaker, were limited to just five — all of which were pulled in by Whitaker.
But in the second half, as the Hornets switched to a full-court press and zeroed in on Perry County Central’s Carter Castle in the paint, Russell grabbed seven boards. Russell said he leaned on his teammates to motivate him in the second half, especially Whitaker and leading scorer Aden Barnett.
“All credit to (Whitaker) right here,” Russell said. “He was the one that picked me up, and also (Barnett) right there. Without them, I definitely could not have had the half that I had. Without Zane boxing out Carter, I would have not been able to get probably any of my rebounds.”
In addition to the seven rebounds, Russell finished with 14 points and one assist. Whitaker contributed 13 points, eight rebounds, one assist and three blocks.
Under renewed pressure, the Commodores (22-14) tripled their first-half turnover count, giving up nine and allowing Magoffin County to convert those into 14 points. Head coach Shannon Hoskins said his team’s uncharacteristic misses — Perry County Central hit only 35% of its shots in the second half — was a credit to the Hornets’ adjustments.
“I thought that was attributed to their pressure,” Hoskins said. “We were taking shots that we were not taking earlier in the game, and not getting it where we wanted it to, namely inside to Carter. The pressure kind of took us out of that.”
Castle, the nephew of Magoffin head coach Scott Castle, finished with 14 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals. Trayten Woods added 14 points, one rebound and two assists.
Barnett, a Mr. Kentucky Basketball candidate, led all scorers with 24 points. He added one rebound, three assists and four steals — all of which came in the second half.
This marked Magoffin County’s first-ever Sweet 16 victory in its first-ever state tournament berth, and its fans showed out for the occasion. The Hornets’ student section animatedly reacted to each and every moment of the tournament, with the fans waving what looked quite similar to the stark white headband worn by Barnett.
If that practice was in honor of him, Barnett didn’t know.
“I’m not sure what it is,” Barnett said. “But whatever it is, I hope they keep doing it. I hope they do it Friday, as well.”
Castle joked that, if things go well for the Hornets in the quarterfinals, he’ll be joining the students.
“Yeah, I hope they wave it Friday, too,” Castle said. “I may wave one too if we get the lead.”
Magoffin County will play the winner of Spencer County and Great Crossing on Friday at 11 a.m.
This story was originally published March 20, 2024 at 2:48 PM.
