Boys Louisville Invitational Tournament: Western, Manual, Ballard, Male make semifinals
Asked the significance of this week’s Republic Bank Louisville Invitational Tournament, Western High School sophomore Jayden Miles didn’t hold back.
“City championship, so it means a lot,” he said. “Everybody’s doubting us. We got the (6) seed, and we’re really No. 1.”
The Warriors took a big step toward backing that claim Wednesday, rallying in the fourth quarter to knock off Trinity 48-42 in an LIT quarterfinal at Valley.
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At No. 6, the Warriors (14-3) are the highest-ranked team from Louisville in the Kentucky High School Basketball Media Poll. Now they’re one victory away from making the LIT final for the first time in school history.
“We’re definitely in uncharted territory — me, the kids, my coaching staff,” Western coach Brandon Britt said. “We’re excited.”
Josiah Lawson led the Warriors with 13 points. Julius Edmonds had 12 points and seven rebounds, and Miles pitched in 10 points, five rebounds and four blocks.
Western will face Male in Friday’s 6 p.m. semifinal.
Drae Vasser had 14 points, eight rebounds and four steals to lead Trinity (13-5), which played without starter C.J. Walls (illness) and reserves Matt Toller (illness) and David Pfeifer (concussion protocol).
Trinity led 39-33 after a pair of Cam McClain free throws with 3:03 remaining, but Western scored the next 15 points to take control. The Warriors used their press to force four straight Shamrocks turnovers during one stretch.
“We have guards who like to press, and they don’t run out of energy,” Edmonds said. “Our guards handle the front, and our bigs handle the back.”
Miles sank two free throws with 1:16 left to give Western a 40-39 lead. The key moment came with 49.3 seconds left, when Lawson scored and was fouled. He missed the free throw, but Edmonds grabbed the rebound and scored for a 44-39 lead with 47 seconds left.
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Western shot just 38.6%, and Britt admitted some to feeling some frustration early as his team missed several close shots.
Ultimately, patience paid off.
“I put these guys through so much adversity,” Britt said. “Moments like that, they’re built for them. I expect nothing else than for them to make that happen right there. I have full faith them.”
WESTERN 4 14 11 19 - 48
TRINITY 13 4 16 9 - 42
Western (14-3) – Josiah Lawson 13, Ondre Wicks 4, Elijah Clinton 2, Julius Edmonds 12, Trent Hinkle 5, Jayden Miles 10, Anthony Lawrence 2.
Trinity (13-5) – Lance Chandler 2, Drae Vasser 14, Cam McClain 14, Jayden Johnson 2, Alex Johnson 10.
Manual 40, Eastern 38
Malachi Coleman’s layup with 13 seconds left was the difference as the Crimsons (10-8) rallied past the Eagles (12-4).
After a timeout, Manual’s Justice Decker made a nice pass to Coleman on a back-door cut to give Manual the lead.
“Malachi made a hard cut, and we knew they had been overplaying us,” said Crimsons coach Miquel Coleman, Malachi’s father. “We knew the back-door opportunity was going to be there. … He was wide-open, and it was a good pass by Justice.”
Here’s the basket by Malachi Coleman that won it for Manual. pic.twitter.com/gJkxCLTqb8
— Jason Frakes (@kyhighs) January 11, 2023
Eastern had a final shot to win, but Jack Donan’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer was short.
Brady Hurley scored 12 points and Josh Darst added 11 to lead Manual, which closed the game with an 11-3 run after trailing 35-29 with 3:15 left. The Crimsons will face Ballard in Friday’s 7:30 p.m. semifinal.
Manual continued to play without star junior Damone King (15.4 ppg, 5.7 rpg), who suffered an ankle injury in a loss to Pleasure Ridge Park on Jan. 4. Coleman said King is unlikely to return this week.
“When you lose a player like Damone King, it’s difficult,” Miquel Coleman said. “He makes life easy for everybody.”
Owen Shee scored 14 points to lead Eastern, which shot 36.1% and committed 20 turnovers.
MANUAL 8 6 10 16 - 40
EASTERN 10 7 10 11 - 38
Manual (10-8) – Justice Decker 4, Darin Wells 2, Malachi Coleman 5, Brady Hurley 12, Donavyn Knox 1, Josh Darst 11, Jared Tuvlin 5.
Eastern (12-4) – Taylen Carver 7, Andre Clarke 2, Jack Donan 4, Sam Locke 4, Sam Glass 7, Owen Shee 14.
Ballard 60, St. Xavier 57
Gabe Sisk scored 25 points, including 19 in the first half, to lead the top-seeded Bruins (13-2) over the Tigers (9-7).
Ballard built a 50-41 lead after three quarters and held on in the fourth. Will Hanke’s put-back basket with 2.5 seconds left pulled St. X within 59-57, but Sam Frazier hit 1 of 2 free throws with 1.5 seconds left to seal it.
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Miles Franklin pitched in 10 points and three steals for Ballard.
Nelson Williams scored 17 points to lead St. X, which won the rebounding battle 41-27 but shot just 33.3% (12 of 36) in the second half.
ST. XAVIER 13 16 12 16 – 57
BALLARD 14 23 13 10 – 60
St. Xavier (9-7) – Nelson Williams 17, Jermaine Cameron 4, Chance Dillingham 9, Graham Krezmien 6, Jeremiah Jackson 11, Tommy Scanlan 2, Will Hanke 8.
Ballard (13-2) – Sam Frazier 7, Evan Chiles 2, Nate Richardson 3, Miles Franklin 10, Gabe Sisk 25, Tim Fuller 9, Xavier Zubric 4.
Male 64, Central 32
The Bulldogs (9-8) hit 11 of 27 3-point attempts on their way to routing the Yellow Jackets (8-10).
Jack Edelen nailed three 3-pointers and scored 17 points to lead Male. Younger brother Cole Edelen was 4 for 11 from 3-point range and scored 16 points. Meechie White pitched in 14 points and 13 rebounds for the defending LIT champions.
Previous coverage: Male High boys basketball finds needed confidence boost in advancing to LIT quarterfinals
Male built a 41-14 halftime lead and cruised the rest of the way.
Jenuel Aquino had 10 points and eight rebounds to lead Central, which shot just 27.3% and committed 19 turnovers.
MALE 16 25 10 13 – 64
CENTRAL 8 6 11 7 - 32
Male (9-8) – Cole Edelen 16, Brandon Richardson 2, Meechie White 14, Jack Edelen 17, Shammai Gates 2, Terrence Hall 6, Jayson Gasaway 5, Deashawn Jordan 2.
Central (8-10) – Aaron Walker 2, Devin Henderson 3, Lance Briggs 3, Devan Rowan 8, Kaevon Ennis 3, Jenuel Aquino 10, Alberto Franco 3.
Jason Frakes: 502-582-4046; jfrakes@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @kyhighs.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville Invitational Tournament: Western, Manual, Ballard, Male win
