In a gym that was filled to more than capacity, with fans standing on the stairwells, at the end of the court, and some standing in the lobby of Henderson County High School that could not make it all the way into the gym, the UHA Blazers earned their first trip to the Sweet 16 in ten years Monday night. It was a game filled with big momentum swings, big plays, an electric atmosphere, and in the end it was the Blazers who made the last series of big plays to knock off Christian County 78-70.
The two teams quickly gave indication as to the pace and what kind of game this championship matchup would be. Behind the 3-point shooting of Drew McGowan, UHA opened with an 11-4 lead. Taquan Hollowell then took over for the rest of the opening quarter for the Blazers, scoring nine points over the final four minutes of the quarter to extend UHA’s lead to 23-12 after one.
Kwun Dorsey opened the second quarter with a pair of free throws for UHA, and the Blazer lead was out to 25-12. But you knew, you just knew, it was not going to be that easy for either team. With Detorrion Ware heating up, the Colonels then went on a 17-4 run to tie the game at 29-29. UHA managed to get back out in front at 33-31, but the Colonels then scored the last five points of the half to take a 36-33 lead at the break.
With a slew of college coaches in attendance, including John Calipari, Travis Ford, and Ray Harper, the stars for both teams were putting on a show in the first half, and nothing changed over the rest of the game. At the half, Ware had 18 for Christian County, with Tandy and Hollowell combining for 19 for UHA.
The second half opened with a putback for Ware, and the Colonel lead growing to 38-33. UHA got baskets from Hollowell and Malik Lovan to tie the game at 38-38, and the wild second half finish was underway.
With John Calpari cracking occasional smiles at what he was seeing on the court, Detorrion Ware and KyKy Tandy took the 3rd quarter and made it theirs. The two stars went back and forth and back and forth some more. Ware scored 13 in the quarter for Christian County, and Tandy scored 11 for UHA. By the time the quarter came to an end, the Colonels were clinging to a 56-55 lead.
Ware opened the final quarter with a basket to put the Colonels out to a 58-55 lead. The Blazers then made their final push and it was enough to spur them on to the trip to Rupp Arena. UHA went on a 9-0 run to take a 64-58 lead, a lead they would not relinquish for the rest of the night. The Blazers extended the lead to 66-59 on a basket by KJ Crump, setting up one last rally attempt by Christian County.
Detorrion Ware, playing in his final high school game, scored six points from the line, and the Colonels got big baskets from Eric Brody and Kolbe Langhi to get the lead down to 72-70 with 1:00 to go. Then came one of those moments that legends are made of, and games are seized and won.
After he was fouled on the offensive end in the final minute, KyKy Tandy began to cramp up. In fact, the cramp was so bad, you could see the knot in his calf from the stands. Tandy somehow managed to get to the line and make the first free throw. He then stumbled down the lane, trying to get the muscle to stretch, got back to the line and made the second free throw. Both tosses hit nothing but the bottom of the net. Tandy then exited the game to get the cramp attended to.
Kwun Dorsey got a shot in closed to push the lead to 76-70. When Tandy re-entered the game the Blazer fans roared as the trip to Rupp got close. In the waning seconds, with Christian County rushing shots trying desperately to rally, Tandy got open on a breakaway, he missed the dunk, with the miss bouncing into backcourt, The Blazers recovered the ball however, and got the ball back to a wide open Tandy, who closed out the game with a layup for the final eight point margin.
Tandy led the way for UHA with 33 points. Taquan Hollowell added 13, while Drew McGowan and KJ Crump had 11 points each.
Another huge night for Detorrion Ware for Christian County, as the senior came up with 40 points. Cory Trice added 13 for the Colonels before fouling out late in the game.
Christian County ends the season at 22-8.
UHA improves to 23-7 and will advance to the Sweet 16 next week at Rupp Arena. They will play the winner of Region 10 in the first game of the day Thursday, March 15, at 12:00pm.