Girls’ Sweet 16: Anderson shows its depth from deep as Bearcats roll over Franklin
With a stunning display of three-point shooting in the first half and a stifling defense throughout, Anderson County rolled to a 53-35 win over Franklin County on Friday in the quarterfinals of the Mingua Beef Jerky/KHSAA Girls’ Sweet 16 at Rupp Arena.
The Bearcats (28-2) made 10 of 19 three-pointers in the game, including going 4-for-5 from deep in a decisive second quarter.
“The second quarter was definitely where we were able to put our will down on that game,” Anderson Coach Clay Birdwhistell said. “Defensively, the first half especially, we did a lot of really good things.”
Paige Serafini, a junior guard coming off the Bearcats’ bench, had four of those first-half bombs on her way to 14 points among Anderson’s balanced lineup. Five different players hit threes and seven different players scored.
“My teammates did a good job of finding me for open looks,” Serafini said. “You never know when it’s going to be a good shooting day and when it’s not, but I felt pretty good warming up, so when I got an open look, I knew I could knock in the shot.”
Anderson County blew open the game in the second period with a 19-0 run sparked by Serafini. She hit three of the Bearcats’ five three-pointers in the quarter while their defense held Franklin County scoreless. Serafini came free for back-to-back threes midway through the quarter that prompted a Flyers’ timeout trailing 18-9.
But Franklin couldn’t answer as missed baskets were quickly turned into transition points for Anderson. Tiffani Riley hit a trey from the left wing on one break and Serafini stayed hot with her fourth three of the game on another. By halftime, Anderson led 30-9 and the partisan Bearcats crowd saluted them with a standing ovation going into the locker room.
Anderson looked dangerous from deep from the start, firing seven three-point shots up in the first quarter and getting makes from Sophie Smith, Serafini and Riley as the Bearcats built an early 11-5 edge. Franklin County responded by going to their post players, getting seven points from forward Patience Laster and two from Jhaven Meade. Laster’s free-throw line jumper just ahead of the horn cut Anderson’s lead to 11-9. Meade and Laster combined for five offensive rebounds in the period to help keep Franklin possessions alive.
Franklin County (18-5) ended its scoring drought in the third quarter by going back inside with buckets from Meade and Laster. It also got a pair of three-pointers by Shauvi Kennedy. But the effort failed to crack into Anderson’s lead as the Bearcats kept firing away from deep. Satterly hit a pair of threes while Anderson kept hurting Franklin with transition scores, finishing the quarter with a 46-22 lead.
“We just dug ourselves a hole in the second quarter,” Franklin County Coach Joey Thacker said. “And you’ve got to make shots. We missed those free throws and layups early to get a lead in the first quarter, and then it snowballed.”
The Bearcats held 11th Region player of the year Brooklynn Miles to four points, not letting her get a field goal until the second half. Laster led the Flyers with 14 points.
“We have to go do our job every possession. Every pass, we’ve got to be in the right spot. If we do that enough, we’ll be pretty good defensively,” Birdwhistell said of his defensive philosophy.
Anderson will face Sacred Heart in the 11 a.m. Saturday semifinal for the right to play in Saturday night’s finals.
The Bearcats last made the Sweet 16 semifinals in 2013 when Birdwhistell was an assistant under Tony Kays. Anderson fell to eventual state champion Marion County.
Anderson County survived a 69-68 thriller at Sacred Heart on Feb. 20 when Serafini banked in a winning three-pointer with 2.2 seconds left in the game.
Girls’ Sweet 16
What: Sixteen-team tournament to decide Kentucky’s high school basketball state champion
When: Through Saturday
Where: Rupp Arena
Tickets: Tickets available for purchase at KHSAA.org.
Girls’ Sweet 16 scores, schedule
At Rupp Arena
Wednesday
Sacred Heart 64, Knott County Central 32
Bowling Green 50, Bishop Brossart 48, 2OT
Franklin County 55, South Laurel, 50, OT
Anderson County 78, Southwestern 67
Thursday
Marshall County 56, Pikeville 52
Bethlehem 70, Bullitt East 65
Henderson County 55, Apollo 31
Russell 58, Dixie Heights 44
Friday
Sacred Heart 66, Bowling Green 54
Anderson County 53, Franklin County 35
Marshall County vs. Bethlehem, (n)
Henderson County vs. Russell, (n)
Saturday
11 a.m.: Sacred Heart vs. Anderson County
2 p.m.: Marshall County-Bethlehem winner vs. Henderson County-Russell winner
8 p.m.: Championship game
This story was originally published April 9, 2021 at 4:25 PM.
