By Sam McClanahan
The Pendleton County Wildcats basketball team returned to action following a lengthy 11-day layoff thanks to the recent snowstorm that swept through the state.
On January 11, the team hosted Montgomery County in their first home game in three weeks. The game got off to a fast-paced start as both squads used a quick, uptempo pace on offense. Wildcats sophomore Ja'Zi Grayson would score six early points to help Pendleton County grab a 17-15 advantage after one quarter. During the second quarter, the Wildcats would see their lead grow to six as senior Aden Merrill scored six points and fellow senior Luke Gregg added three of his five points during the quarter. Pendleton County would head into halftime with a 26-23 lead.
In the third quarter, Montgomery County came to life as they put together a 9-2 run to take the lead and went onto dominate the frame by outscoring the Wildcats 16-4 and take a 41-31 lead into the start of the fourth quarter. During the fourth quarter, Pendleton County would chip away into the deficit as Merrill put the team on his back and scored 10 of his team-high 21 points to keep Pendleton County within striking distance. Unfortunately, Montgomery County would prevent a comeback effort and leave Falmouth with a 54-46 victory. Ja'Zi Grayson also reached double-figures with 12 points.
On January 17, Pendleton County traveled to Nicholas County for a showdown with their district rival. The team's battled evenly throughout the first eight minutes as the contest had the feel of a postseason matchup. The Wildcats would deliver the final punch of the quarter as junior Dawson Nichols swished a three-pointer just before the horn sounded to give Pendleton County a 15-12 lead.
In the second quarter, the two rivals continued to trade baskets as well as the lead as sophomore Kamden O'Hara knocked down a key three-pointer (his third of the half) to give his team the lead and the Wildcats led 28-27 at the break.
In the second half, Pendleton County would receive big plays from multiple players that would help them keep their advantage over Nicholas County. O'Hara swished another big three-pointer and Hunter Keeton along with Aden Merrill delivered big baskets. Sophomore Parker McCandless made the most of his minutes as he came off the bench to convert a huge layup just before the third quarter ended to give the Wildcats a 45-42 lead. During the fourth quarter, Pendleton County would receive clutch three-pointers from Merrill and O'Hara to help the Wildcats fend off Nicholas County and pull out a hard-fought 58-56 win. O'Hara led Pendleton County with 23 points (seven made three-pointers) and Merrill added 13. Ja'Zi Grayson would finish with nine.
Pendleton County concluded their week at Bracken County looking at score a win over their border rival. The Wildcats would enjoy a lopsided victory as they led 51-28 at the half and cruised to a 89-52 win. Aden Merrill scored a team-best 26 points in the first three quarters to led the offensive output by the Wildcats. Ja'Zi Grayson finished with 16, Hunter Keeton added 13, senior Brayden Marquette scored nine and Kamden O'Hara and Dawson Nichols added eight apiece.
This week the team will host Bourbon County on January 23 and cap the week with another district contest taking on rival Harrison County on January 24.