‘It’s survive and advance.’ No. 1 Sacred Heart denies upset bid by George Rogers Clark.

George Rogers Clark got off to the best start it could hope for against three-time defending state champion Sacred Heart on Thursday night.

But after taking a 21-10 first quarter lead, the No. 3 Cardinals’ hot shooting hands cooled and with it their full-court defensive pressure withered.

That spelled disaster for the 10th Region champs as No. 1 Sacred Heart regrouped for a 57-46 win at Rupp Arena in the first round of the Mingua Beef Jerky Girls’ Sweet 16.

The Valkyries (27-7) turned their 11-point first quarter deficit into a 26-21 halftime lead thanks to a 16-0 run that included holding Clark scoreless for the entire second quarter.

“We knew they were going to press us and we did not handle the press very well in the first quarter,” Sacred Heart coach Donna Moir said. “I was real proud of our girls. They stayed in the moment and we came out and defended that second quarter.”

Angelina Pelayo, a 6-foot-3 senior center committed to North Carolina-Wilmington, took advantage of her size mismatch inside to lead the Valkyries with 20 points despite Clark’s efforts to deny and double-team her.

“One of our coaches, Amy Siegel, she says, ‘Get low, get the ball on your chin and go.’” Pelayo explained. “And so I knew that they weren’t great matchups with me and I could just score, and so I did what I had to do.”

Meanwhile, Sacred Heart’s ZaKiyah Johnson, who on Thursday morning was named Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year for the third consecutive season, scored 18 points and dished out a team-high five assists. Four of those passes went to Pelayo.

“I can see when she has a mismatch and I’m going to give it to her every time and let her go to work,” Johnson said. “I don’t care how many points I have. It’s survive and advance.”

Clark coach Robbie Graham lamented the Cardinals’ inability to score in the second quarter.

“The rim got smaller, we got tight and we couldn’t make shots,” Graham said. “Against a team like that, you can’t have a scoring drought.”

Clark (30-4) opened the second half well, and closed to within 31-30 with 3:07 left in the third quarter, but Sacred Heart responded with a 16-2 run over the next six minutes to put the game away. The breakaway included a heavy dose of Pelayo and Johnson. Johnson’s second 3-pointer of the game gave the Valkyries a 42-32 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Clark was led by Kennedy Stamper and Anaya Chestnut, who scored 13 and 11 points, respectively.

“They’re three-time state champs, very talented and very well coached and they’re on a mission,” Graham said of Sacred Heart, who is pursuing an unprecedented fourth straight state title. “We just kind of ran into a buzzsaw, but our kids fought. … It just wasn’t our night.”

Next, Sacred Heart was to face Bethlehem in Friday’s 6:30 p.m. quarterfinals. The Banshees, ranked No. 6 in the final Dave Cantrall Ratings of the regular season, feature Leah Macy, the state’s other top-10 nationally ranked junior recruit. It was Macy’s Mercy team in 2022 that gave Sacred Heart its last in-state loss. That was 70 games ago.

Sacred Heart watched Bethlehem’s 56-49 win over Pikeville earlier Thursday, but Moir admitted to not having studied their quarterfinals opponent much, yet.

“I know everybody’s kind of looking forward to the matchup with ZaKiyah and Leah Macy,” Moir said. ”I think it’s gonna be a great game.”

2024 Girls’ Sweet 16

What: Sixteen-team tournament to decide Kentucky’s high school basketball state champion.

When: Wednesday through Saturday

Where: Rupp Arena

Tickets: Tickets available for purchase at KHSAA.org/tickets.

Girls’ Sweet 16 schedule

At Rupp Arena

WEDNESDAY’S FIRST-ROUND GAMES

▪ Bowling Green 46, Owsley County 44

▪ McCracken County 50, Russell 33

▪ Butler 58, Anderson County 49

▪ Franklin County 51, North Laurel 30

THURSDAY’S FIRST-ROUND GAMES

▪ Bethlehem 56, Pikeville 49

▪ Henderson County 43, Owensboro 39

▪ Sacred Heart 57, George Rogers Clark 46

▪ Cooper 65, Danville Christian 63

FRIDAY’S QUARTERFINALS

11 a.m.: Bowling Green (24-10) vs. McCracken County (30-5)

1:30 p.m.: Butler (27-8) vs. Franklin County (30-6)

6 p.m.: Sacred Heart (28-7) vs. Bethlehem (27-8)

8:30 p.m.: Cooper (30-4) vs. Henderson County (26-7)

SATURDAY’S GAMES

11 a.m.: Semifinal 1: Winners of Friday’s afternoon session

1:30 p.m.: Semifinal 2: Winners of Friday’s evening session

7 p.m.: Championship

2024 Girls’ Sweet 16: Day 2 wrap-up from basketball state tournament in Rupp Arena

‘We really wanted that win.’ Huge second half lifts Henderson over Owensboro in Sweet 16.

‘I’ve got Leah Macy back.’ With star back on court, Bethlehem gets revenge in Sweet 16.

‘Hopefully here soon.’ One of Sweet 16’s biggest stars is still shopping for a college.

‘Win or go home.’ Bowling Green’s veterans rally from 15 down to end Owsley’s dream season.

‘Shared sacrifice.’ Franklin County bench steps up, defense shows out in Sweet 16 win.

‘We changed a lot of our bad habits.’ Butler takes down Anderson County in Girls’ Sweet 16.

‘It starts with defense.’ McCracken County shuts down Russell on opening day of Sweet 16.