Douglass upset by Henry Clay ahead of Elite 16 showdown with Madison Central
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Henry Clay erased a 12-point second half deficit to upset No. 8 Frederick Douglass 65-63.
- Jackson Stephan scored 24 and grabbed 19 rebounds, sealing Henry Clay's comeback.
- Broncos face No. 2 Madison Central Friday, a rematch of their King of the Bluegrass tilt.
Ranked in No. 8 in the Kentucky Media Elite 16 boys basketball poll this week with a huge game against No. 2 Madison Central scheduled in Richmond on Friday night, Frederick Douglass suffered a shock 65-63 upset loss at Henry Clay on Tuesday.
The victory improved the Blue Devils to 9-9 overall and 2-2 in the 42nd District. It also ended their three-game losing streak in what has been an up-and-down season, so far.
“When you pull an upset, you’ve got to play hard. We out-rebounded them and did some good things” said Henry Clay coach Daniel Brown, whose team also upset Douglass at home last season. Then, the Broncos ranked No. 3 in the state and were riding a 15-game win streak.
Last week, Douglass (10-5, 2-1) rallied for an overtime win over Bryan Station that gave the Broncos the upper hand in the race for the district’s top postseason seed. Henry Clay’s stunner squandered that advantage.
And considering the Blue Devils suffered an 83-38 rout at Madison Central on Jan. 6, the Broncos’ loss looks even more troubling because they face the Indians on Friday and have already lost to Madison Central once this year, a 72-61 setback in Louisville’s King of the Bluegrass on Dec. 22.
“Tonight we gave an underdog hope. That is something that you can’t do!” Garvin posted on his team’s Facebook page Tuesday night. “It is a formula for a loss when you shoot 8-15 from the free throw line and get outrebounded by a smaller team. I am very disappointed in our energy and ability to finish at the rim and at the free throw line. I give credit to Henry Clay. Their team seemed to play tougher basketball than we did.”
The game appeared headed to overtime after Henry Clay’s Jackson Stephan pulled down a defensive rebound under his own basket with five seconds to go. But as Stephan raced up court he inexplicably got fouled on his desperation heave from the center line.
The senior Air Force commit made two of his three free throws with one second on the clock to finish with a game-high 24 points. Stephan also pulled in 19 rebounds as the Blue Devils won the battle of the boards 29-24.
Henry Clay trailed nearly all of the first three quarters and were down by 12 with 2:46 left in third. The Blue Devils outscored Douglass 17-6 over the next five minutes and tied it 51-51on a 3-pointer by Jack Hemenway with 5:45 left. Hemenway finished with 17 points. Isaiah Brown added 10.
Douglass had the ball with a chance to go ahead with 14 seconds left, but Thurman Wade missed a short jumper in the lane. The Broncos were led by Dakari Talbert’s 18 points. Nate Coen and DeMarcus Surratt scored 13 and 12 points, respectively.
Henry Clay hosts Sayre on Friday and will go to No. 10 Jeffersontown next week. Brown said he hopes his team takes something from their victory.
“If this does anything, it gives us confidence knowing that we can beat a top 10 team. That’s good for us,” he said. “But, also, if you don’t piggyback on it and get better every day, then it doesn’t mean anything. We’ve got a bunch of good games ahead of us and we’ll just try to get on a winning streak instead of a losing streak.”
LCA wins first round game at All “A” Classic
Lexington Christian’s Piper Graham scored 20 points and grabbed six steals to help lead the Eagles to a 56-52 win over Hazard in the first round of the girls All “A” Classic at Owensboro Sportscenter on Wednesday.
The Eagles next face 4th Region champion Monroe County at 11:30 a.m. Friday. The Falcons were a 58-24 winner over Louisville Holy Cross.
It will be the first meeting between LCA and Monroe. LCA also advanced to the All “A” quarterfinals last season.
Against Hazard, senior Jentry Bertram scored 10 points with 11 rebounds and Fairjana McLaughlin also scored 10 points for the Eagles. Hazard was led by Maddi Frohnapfel and Laura Everidge, each with 19 points.
Lexington Christian’s boys team was scheduled to play its All “A” first round game against Newport at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Girls All “A” Classic
At Owensboro Sportscenter
FRIDAY’S QUARTERFINALS
Owen County vs. Owensboro Catholic, 8:30 a.m.
Danville Christian vs. Bishop Brossart, 10 a.m.
Monroe County vs. Lexington Christian, 11:30 a.m.
Covington Holy Cross vs. Lyon County, 1 p.m.
Pay-per-view stream: Go.PrepSpin.com
