Jim Mashek

CHRISTIAN DOERR’s 21 POINTS SEND EAGLES TO VICTORY

LEXINGTON — Butler County High School’s maiden voyage to the KHSAA Sweet 16 has come and gone.

But it was a rewarding experience for the Bears.

Evangel Christian Academy, a team with exceptional talent and quickness, bolted to an early lead and held off Butler County at several critical junctures, and the Eagles claimed a 71-60 victory over the Bears on Thursday afternoon before an enthusiastic Rupp Arena crowd of 11,061.

Evangel Christian’s Davier White turned in a strong defensive performance to limit Bears star Ty Price’s effectiveness, and teammate Christian Doerr scored 21 points to lead the Eagles to the victory in first-round play of the KHSAA Sweet 16.

Evangel Christian improved to 30-6 on the season. The Eagles will tangle with Louisville’s Trinity High School in the final quarterfinal game on Friday night, while Butler County’s history making season finally came to a close.

Butler County, making the first Sweet 16 appearance in school history, finished its season with a 23-9 record.

“Evangel’s a really good team,” Butler County coach Calvin Dockery said. “Our guys fought really hard. I’m proud of the way they handled this stage. I think we learned a lot. Hopefully, that will help us in the future.”

Price, the Bears’ gifted junior guard, averaged nearly 30 points per game this season. But Evangel’s Isaiah Chitapa shadowed Price’s every move in helping the Eagles reach the quarterfinals. Price hit just 5 of 20 shots, including an 0-for-10 showing from 3-point land, while finishing with 12 points. He also had a game-high seven turnovers, but his defense helped Butler County stay within striking distance for much of the game.

Junior forward Lawson Rice turned in a strong effort for the Bears, finishing with a team-high 19 points, along with six rebounds and two blocked shots. Butler County’s Justin Castlen added 16 points and 10 rebounds, and the Bears stayed within striking distance for the vast majority of the game.

Dockery used just six players in the game, but Evangel Christian is not a particularly deep team, either.

The Bears certainly made quite an impression on Evangel coach Larry Miller.

“Hat’s off to Butler County,” Miller said. “They played extremely hard, they’re extremely well coached. And they’re all juniors.

“They’ll be back.”

Christian Doerr carried the Eagles on offense, scoring 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting, but it was Chitapa’s defense that allowed Evangel Christian to pull away in the second quarter. Butler County trailed 35-26 at the break, but the Bears pulled to within four points, at 54-50, in the fourth quarter on Trever Deweese’s layup with about six minutes left in the game.

Doerr scored on a three-point play, putting the Eagles in front, 57-50 with 4:31 left in the game, and Evangel Christian kept the Bears at arm’s length the rest of the way.

“Isaiah (Chitipa) just tried to deny (Butler County’s Ty Price) the ball as much as possible,” Miller said. “He was able to challenge his shots. We wanted to try to keep the ball out of his hands.”

Evangel Christian, a strong favorite from the KHSAA’s 6th Region, shot 50 percent from the field, along with 36 percent from 3-point range. Justin Castlen had four of Butler County’s five 3-point field goals, but the Eagles remained intent on keeping Ty Price bottled up as much as possible.

“They were helping (on defense) on every drive (to the basket,” Price said, “and they were trying to keep the ball out of my hands.

“We’ll use the experience to help motivate us (next season).”

Butler County fans were everywhere inside Rupp Arena, with the Bears savoring their first Sweet 16 experience. Butler coach Calvin Dockery was quick to sing praises for his team when it was over.

“I’ve got a really good team. These kids are tough, they work their butts off,” Dockery said. “We didn’t come here for moral victories. If we get the opportunity to come back here, we’ll embrace this.

“We love our community. They overwhelmed us in so many ways. It’s just amazing.”