Bryan Station wins fifth straight as Owens climbs Lexington scoring ranks
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- Bryan Station records fifth straight win, reasserts status in state conversation
- Amari Owens reaches 2,200 points, ranks No. 8 in Lexington scoring lists
- Tates Creek struggles with shooting and injuries, faces tougher district schedule
Bryan Station’s four losses against six wins in December meant the Herald-Leader preseason No. 7 Defenders began the new year outside the first Kentucky Media Elite 16 poll of the season.
But there have been signs since that Bryan Station has learned from past mistakes and is ready to climb back into the “one-of-the-best-teams-in-the-state” conversation.
The Defenders’ 85-55 win at Tates Creek on Thursday marked their fifth straight victory and third in a row on the road.
In addition, senior point guard Amari Owens’ 29 points against the Commodores lifted him to No. 8 on Lexington boys high school basketball’s all-time scoring list with 2,200 points. He surpassed 1993 Paul Laurence Dunbar grad Darnell Burton’s 2,192 points in the second half as the Defenders ballooned a four-point halftime lead into a blowout.
Earlier this season, Owens became Bryan Station’s second all-time leading scorer when he passed the 2,066 points scored by 1998 alum Jaron Brown.
“It’s crazy playing with him, but it’s fun because you never know what he’s going to do,” Bryan Station senior forward Taeshawn Adams said. “He does all these crazy moves, gets to the rim and still finishes through contact for the ‘and-ones.’”
Owens needs 209 points to overtake 1989 grad Mike Allen as the Defenders’ top all-time scorer.
Allen ranks fourth in Lexington history behind old Dunbar’s Julius Berry (3,000 points), Lexington Christian’s Kyle Rode (2,517) and Paul Laurence Dunbar’s Taveion Hollingsworth (2,495).
Owens tries not to think about his points chase, though.
“It’s been in the back of my mind, you know. I’ve been still trying to play through it and not think about it too much because it might mess up the game,” Owens said. “I just try to play and think about the results later.”
The Defenders (10-4) opened the third quarter against Creek with a 12-0 run fueled by a pair of 3-pointers by Torrence Sanford, who finished the game with 10 points. Adams added 20 points and eight rebounds. Ethan Owens scored 15 points off the bench.
“The offense is starting to come along. We’re starting to score better against zones,” Bryan Station coach Champ Ligon said. “I feel like we’re kind of getting our identity and everybody’s kind of understanding each other. But we still have a long way to go.”
Tates Creek (8-7) put up a significant fight in the first half thanks in part to its ability to knock down 3-pointers. The Commodores took a 26-24 lead in the second quarter on a Tom Haubenreich 3 with 3:01 left until the break.
The Commodores seem to live and die this season on their 3-point percentage. In a 115-89 win over Adair County on Dec. 19, Tates Creek knocked down a school-record 29 3-pointers. That’s tied for the second most in Kentucky boys basketball history.
Tates Creek made just 10 of its 38 3-point attempts against Bryan Station on Thursday, however, and the Commodores surrendered 16 turnovers as they wore down without starting point guard A.J. Slaughter and sixth man D.J. Searight, who suffered injuries during Tuesday’s loss at Lafayette. Haubenreich led Tates Creek with 14 points; Stephen Franklin added 13.
“We have guys that when their confidence is sky high, they can outshoot teams,” Tates Creek coach Keaton Belcher said. “We’re just in a bad shooting slump right now. Our schedule has gotten tougher, which has something to do with it.”
Both Bryan Station and Tates Creek have the bulk of their district schedules ahead. They start off with some doozies next week.
The Commodores visit No. 14 Lexington Catholic on Monday. The Defenders visit No. 6 Frederick Douglass on Tuesday.
Top 10 showdown at The Farm on Saturday
Frederick Douglass hosts No. 8 George Rogers Clark at 1 p.m. Saturday.
The matchup will be a stern test for the Broncos (8-3). Clark (10-3) is a perennial 10th Region favorite and has three double-figure scorers in Montez Gay (17.1 ppg), Ryder Akins (15.5) and Malachi Ashford (12.2).
Bellarmine commit DeMarcus Surratt (21.1 ppg) and Tate Robinson (13.3) lead Douglass in scoring.
Lexington all-time boys basketball scorers
Rank. Player, School, Points, Grad year
1. Julius Berry, Lexington Dunbar, 3000, 1959
2. Kyle Rode, Lexington Christian, 2517, 2019
3. Taveion Hollingsworth, Paul Laurence Dunbar, 2495, 2017
4. Mike Allen, Bryan Station, 2408, 1989
5. Ben Johnson, Lexington Catholic, 2354, 2021
6. Jackson Davis, Lafayette, 2343, 2014
7. Mike Smith, Sayre/Dunbar, 2324, 2013
8. Amari Owens, Bryan Station, 2200, 2026
9. Darnell Burton, Paul Laurence Dunbar, 2192, 1993
10. Demetrius Green, Lexington Catholic, 2144, 2004
11. Jaron Brown, Bryan Station, 2066, 1998
This story was originally published January 9, 2026 at 1:32 AM.
