The UHA Blazers were hoping for a much longer stay at this year’s All A Classsic in Richmond, but cold shooting the physical play of Lexington Christian ended those hopes Thursday afternoon at McBrayer Arena. UHA fell behind 7-0 to open the game and never got back on track as they fell to LCA 68-47 in the opening round of the boys tournament.
Lexington Christian exhibited their physical strength right out of the gate, muscling their way to baskets inside the paint and controlling both the offensive and defensive glass. After the opening run for the Eagles, KyKy Tandy got the Blazers as close as they would be for the rest of the game when he connected on a long three with 6:10 to go in the first quarter.
LCA then exploded for a 12-0 run to fully take control of the contest. Much of the damage was done by big man Kyle Rode, who ended up with a triple-double on the afternoon for Lexington Christian. A putback by Kwun Dorsey with 1:21 to go in the quarter stopped the run. Still, LCA led 23-7 at the end of the quarter.
Any serious chances for a UHA run in the second quarter ended early in the quarter. After LCA scored the last basket of the first quarter, the Eagles then opened the 2nd quarter on an 8-0 run to blow the lead on out to 24 points at 31-7. The Blazers were able to play fairly even with the Eagles for the rest of the half, but by that time the damage had been done, as Lexington Christian took a 44-18 lead into the break.
UHA came out of the break and turned up the pace and the defensive pressure trying to make a run that would get them back in the game. However, LCA seemed to have every answer at just the right time, as UHA could get no closer than 21 points in the 3rd quarter. The Eagles ended the quarter with a 58-35 lead.
Drew McGowan opened the final quarter with a 3 to cut the lead to 20, but the Blazers could never mount a serious charge against the more physical Eagles, and that would be as close as UHA could get for the rest of the game.
KyKy Tandy paced the UHA effort with 20 points, but like his teammates, Tandy struggled from the field connecting on only 8 of 22 shots. Drew McGowan was also in double figures with 11.
LCA got a monster day from their big man Kyle Rode. Rode had 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists in the contest. Austin Hall had 15, while Carter Hendrickson added 14 for the Eagles.
The loss ends an 8-game winning streak for the Blazers and drops their record to 13-5 on the season. The Blazers are set to return to the court Wednesday for the completion of their suspended game with Christian County.
