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Wildcats junior Aden Merrill maneuvers around the Nicholas Co. defense to score two of his 16 points in the Feb. 2 match up. Photo by Sam McClanahan.
By Sam McClanahan
The Pendleton County Wildcats took on a pair of rivals from the 38th District and came away with mixed results.
The team scored a lopsided 85-52 victory over Robertson County on Jan. 30 but would fall at Nicholas County 64-59 on Feb. 2 in a game that admittedly slipped through their hands.
Pendleton County had no issue in the home matchup with Robertson as the Wildcats jumped out to an eye-popping 35-5 after the first quarter. By halftime, the score grew to 54-19 and head coach Mason Monroe employed his entire varsity roster during the win. Junior Aden Merrill led the team with 15 points and senior Alex Beyst scored 13. Freshman Ja'Zi posted 11 points as 13 total Wildcats got into the scoring column.
The team looked to pull off an upset at Nicholas County in Carlisle in a pivotal district matchup. This game featured plenty of intensity and hard-fought play as the two teams battled evenly through the first quarter and were tied at 12 apiece. The second quarter would be nip and tuck as well, however, Pendleton County would enjoy a slim 26-25 advantage heading into halftime.
The third quarter remained close as well with both teams getting key baskets to keep the game close. Pendleton County led 43-40 to start the fourth quarter. That's when Nicholas County would turn it up. The Blue Jackets would begin the final quarter blitzing the Wildcats with a 10-2 run that would see them take the lead and seize control of the contest. From there, the Wildcats were forced to play from behind, but would not go down without a fight. Despite the their best efforts, Nicholas County was able to do just enough the hold court and score a five-point win over the Wildcats. Beyst would lead Pendleton County with 21 points while senior center Austin Kirsch posted 19. Merrill rounded out the offense with 16 points.
"I thought our guys fought hard all night. We did exactly what we needed to do to give ourselves a chance to win a district game on the road," said Wildcats head coach Mason Monroe. "We minimized turnovers and kept the rebound battle close. The difference in the game was Nicholas made timely shots in the fourth quarter. However, we shot 14 percent from three on 21 attempts. It's going to be hard to win shooting that poorly from the perimeter. Just an average three point shooting night and we are looking at a very different result.
"We still have a chance at the one seed via a three way tie which results in a coin flip. We have to keep taking it one game at a time to give ourselves that opportunity. Regardless, if we can put a full game together for 32 minutes, I like our chances against anyone in the district," Monroe added.
This week, Pendleton hosts Model on Feb. 5, followed by a trip to Augusta on Feb. 6 to take on the Panthers. The team will wrap up the week in Cynthiana on Feb. 9 taking on Harrison County in another important district contest.