When the horn sounded in Henderson last Monday night, the UHA Blazers were headed to their first Sweet 16 in ten years. While it is their seventh appearance in 27 years, the Blazers would love to repeat the magic of their very first run through the biggest show in high school hoops.
Back in 1992, the Blazers opened the tournament taking on Mason County in Freedom Hall. The Blazers, leading 4-2, ran off the next 15 points of the game to take a 19-2 lead, and never looked back. UHA led 19-4 after the first quarter. Mason County cut the lead to 25-19 at the half. The Blazers put the game away in the 3rd quarter, outscoring Mason County 18-5 to push the lead to 43-24. UHA went on to win the game 65-52. Marty Cline led UHA with 20 points, while Derrick Quarles added 15.
The Blazers faced a tougher test in the quarterfinals as they took on Pleasure Ridge Park. UHA led after the first quarter 12-11. PRP battled back and took a 22-20 lead at the half. The two teams continued to battle through the third quarter, with PRP extending their lead to 31-27. Pleasure Ridge Park scored first in the final quarter to extend the lead to 33-27. UHA pushed back to take a 41-40 lead with just under four minutes left, and the nerve wracking finish was on.
PRP got a basket from J.J. Watters with 45 seconds left to tie the game at 51-51. Watters would then foul Marty Cline with 15 seconds left, and Cline knocked down both free throws for the game winning points. Otis Duiguid sealed the 53-51 win with a steal in the waning seconds.
Marty Cline again led the Blazers with 17 points, while Darren Allaway added 15.
In the semfinals, the Blazers again had to rally late to pull out the win and advance. In their game against Owensboro, UHA led 14-12 after the first quarter. Neither team could get much going in the second quarter, as the Red Devils outscored the Blazers 6-5, giving UHA the slimmest of halftime margins at 19-18.
Owensboro outscored UHA at the beginning of the 3rd quarter 7-1 to take a 25-20 lead. The Blazers fought back, and when Marty Cline hit a shot just ahead of the buzzer, UHA was down only 28-27. UHA scored the first six points of the final quarter to take a 33-28 lead, a lead they would not give back. UHA would lead by as many as 6 in the final minute, before holding off the Red Devils for a 44-41. Marty Cline again led UHA with 16 points, while Darren Allaway scored 14.
In the final, UHA faced Lexington Catholic, on the very night that UK lost to Duke in the greatest college basketball game ever. The two teams went toe-to-toe early, with the game tied three times in the first quarter, the last time at the end of the quarter at 13-13. Lexington Catholic took the halftime lead at 28-26 on a shot by Monty Fraley in the final minut.
The Blazers then effectively won the championship in the 3rd quarter. After a 3 point shot by Lexington Catholic to open the second half, UHA went on an 11-3 run to take the lead, and they would not trail again for the rest of the night. The Blazers ended the 3rd quarter up 47-39. The game would come down to the wire though, as Catholic battled back, and got the lead down to 2 points with 12 seconds left, but UHA was able to hold on and pick up the championship in its first ever trip to the Sweet 16.
Marty Cline was spectacular in the final for the Blazers, coming up with 26 points, including 4 of 4 behind the arc, and 4 of 4 at the line. Cline and Allaway were both named to the All Tournament Team.
Since that magical run of 1992, UHA lost to Muhlenberg North in the first round in 1994; lost to Harlan in the quarterfinals in 1995; lost to Trinity in the first round in 2004; lost to Warren Central in the semifinals in 2005; and lost to Lexington Catholic in the first round in 2008.
UHA will open play in the 2018 Sweet 16 Thursday at noon, when they take on Campbell County.