WARREN CENTRAL WILL FACE GEORGE ROGERS CLARK FOR KHSAA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
LEXINGTON — It hasn’t been easy, not by a long shot.
In fact, the Warren Central High School boys basketball team has had to overcome considerable deficits in all three of its KHSAA Sweet Sixteen games this week, and the Dragons have been equal to the task each and every time.
Warren Central will face No. 1-ranked George Rogers Clark for the KHSAA state championship, and the Dragons’ second state title in school history, on Saturday evening at Rupp Arena.
LED BY AS MANY AS 9 POINTS IN THE FIRST HALF.
Tip-off is at 6 p.m. CDT.
Coach William Unseld’s WCHS squad showed resolve again in Sweet Sixteen semifinal play, erasing a 9-point halftime deficit on its way to another white knuckler, a tense 61-58 victory over Covington Catholic in the second of two semifinal games on Saturday afternoon.
The Colonels, who finish their season at 30-5, took the fight to Warren Central in the early going and had a chance to tie the game in the final moments of regulation. But junior guard Evan Ipsaro couldn’t connect on a tough shot from beyond the 3-point line, and the Dragons could finally breathe a sigh of relief before scrambling back to their team hotel.
“I think everybody is starting to see how tough these kids are,” Unseld said. “Getting down is not big to them. They are going to fight you for 32 minutes. I’m just proud of the kids … It was a great game.”
Warren Central improved to 29-3 on the season while extending its winning streak to 17 games.
It was junior forward Chappelle Whitney’s turn to take the initiative on offense, pacing the Dragons with a team-high 21 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Unseld likes his team’s versatility on offense, as it was Omari Glover’s 21 points that sent Warren Central to a 57-54 upset over Louisville Male in first-round play Thursday morning.
On Friday night, Jaiden Lawrence led a balanced WCHS attack with 15 points as the Dragons held on for a 64-58 victory over Murray High School in quarterfinal play.
Whitney is an effective scorer near the basket, and Warren Central withstood a sensational effort from Covington Catholic’s Evan Ipsaro to claim the victory.
FROM 3-POINT RANGE IN THE FIRST HALF.
Ipsaro scored a game-high 30 points on 10-of-22 shooting, most of them on drives to the basket, while hitting all nine of his free throws. Covington Catholic’s Brady Hussey added 10 points as the Colonels outscored Warren Central 14-8 on second-chance points.
No matter.
The Dragons have slayed another top-flight opponent, in pursuit of the second KHSAA state championship in school history. Warren Central won it all in 2004, defeating Mason County in the championship game.
“They kept our guys off the glass in the second half,” Covington Catholic coach Scott Ruthsatz said. “They converted some offensive rebounds into easy baskets … Hat’s off to Warren Central. They made some big shots, late in the game.”
Warren Central swingman Jaiden Lawrence, the only Dragons senior to see significant minutes in the tournament, finished the game with 15 points on 4-of-9 shooting. WCHS teammates Omari Glover and Kade Unseld each finished with eight points.
And the Dragons needed every one of them.
“We had to do a better job in the second half and we did,” WCHS coach William Unseld said. “We rebounded a little better and then we attacked them at the rim.”
George Rogers Clark, a Lexington-area school, needed two overtimes to turn back a gritty Lincoln County squad 54-51. Junior guard Sam Parrish led the Cardinals with 16 points while rugged point guard Aden Slone added 14. Lincoln County’s Tramane Alcorn led all scorers with 19 points.
