Final-minute touchdown by Southwestern drops East, 37-30

Comment by Watchdog: Friday, September 10

I knew it - East Jessamine always were Colts at heart!...read more...

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Comment by zerovic: Thursday, September 9

Kind of looks like Mr. Stark had gotten bored reporting about East Jessamine in the third to last pa...read more...

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Comment by jjhle6: Thursday, September 9

Finally someone else running against her! Joseph Hagen, you have my vote and my support for your cam...read more...

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The West Jessamine boys’ basketball team survived two 3-point attempts in the final seconds to beat Mercer County 51-48 in Pulaski County Tuesday night.

The victory gave the Colts (26-7) their second-straight 12th Region title and a return trip to Rupp Arena for the Sweet Sixteen State Tournament next week.

Senior guard Jarrod Polson scored 31 points, bringing his tournament total to 88. His efforts earned him tournament MVP honors.

“We’ve got one heckuva player in Jarrod Polson; I wouldn’t trade him for anyone in the state,” West Coach Damon Kelley said. “But most importantly, I got a great team. There’s no egos out here. They’ve all bought in defensively (in) what we have to do to be successful. I’m a lucky guy to get to coach this team.”

West led 24-15 at halftime and looked as if the third-straight victory over district rival Mercer (22-10) was going to come easy. But Clay Cinnamon was fouled on a long two-point attempt and completed the three-point play, which seemed to ignite the Titans. A 3-point battle between Mercer and Polson broke out, but the Titans’ 22-point third quarter and defensive effort on Polson pulled them close.

“They were getting a little physical,” Polson said. “But that’s going to happen in a region championship game, so you’ve just got to fight through it. We just had to keep our composure. We knew they were going to go on a run.”

The Colts were able to limit Jamel Talyor and Clay Cinnamon’s efforts in the game. The two combined for just nine points. While they had success stopping the biggest threats from Mercer County, the Titans were able to make 3-point buckets, sinking nine of them.

But the Titans couldn’t get the big one when they needed it. Trailing for most of the game, the Titans closed with about four minutes left in the game, and the Colts started to struggle. Without a field goal, the Colts — who had shown strong free-throw shooting throughout the tournament — struggled from the charity stripe, giving the Titans ample opportunity to take a late lead.

The West defense denied Mercer the lead, and Polson broke the drought with a three-point play. On the final possession, Mercer took two 3-pointers that could have tied the game. Neither found the bottom of the net.

“Mercer’s a great team, and they got hot from the perimeter,” Kelley said. “They were doing everything they could to get the ball out of Jarrod’s hands. We’ve got guys who just needed to step up and make plays. We made just enough. It got a little sketchy there, but we were able to hold on.”

West got seven points from Dylan Pohl, four from Gus Sherrow and three from Kyle Mefford. David Elliott, Bradley Strait and Keston Bartholomew each added a pair.

The Titans got 16 from Kasey McRay, who sank four 3-pointers. Austin Sagraves added a trio of 3-pointers and 11 points. McRay was also named a tournament MVP. Pohl and Sagraves earned player-of-the-game honors.

The Colts are set to face Muhlenberg County Thursday, March 18 in Rupp Arena. Tip-off is set for noon.

West 60, Boyle 52

Polson stole the show in the semifinal match-up, scoring 40 points and making 13 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Colts. No other player from West scored more than five points in the game. Polson had 24 at halftime.

“He was phenomenal tonight,” Kelley said. “I told him in the locker room that he makes me look like a good coach on a night like tonight.”

Boyle led 18-14 after the first quarter thanks to strong outside shooting and an advantage on the boards.

West got a 6-0 run to start the second quarter, but more importantly was able to shut down the Rebel attack.

“We didn’t do a very good job defensively early,” Kelley said. “They were driving right around us in man-to-man. We switched and went zone for a little bit. The fear with that is you’re going to give them some open looks from the perimeter, but what it was, it allowed us to slow them down just enough so that when we went back to man-to-man, they weren’t looking to drive as much.”

The Colts rode a 22-point second quarter to take a 36-33 lead at halftime. Each team scored only five points in the third quarter, and most of the Colts’ 19 fourth-quarter points came from Polson’s shooting at the stripe.

“When a kid is feeling it like he is, you just give him the freedom and let him go,” Kelley said.

Polson was named the player of the game for West Jessamine; Cory Jones was player of the game for Boyle County.

West 56, Wayne 54

The Colts got a bucket with 2.5 seconds left to get a late 56-54 win over the Cardinals at Pulaski County in the first round of the 12th Region tournament.

It was the second meeting between the two teams, with West winning at home 96-61. That game, Kelley said, was an anomaly.

“What happened at our place two and a half weeks ago is going to happen one out of 100 times,” he said. “It was senior night. We were coming off a loss. We played as well as we had all year. They had a two-hour bus ride. They didn’t compete well that night. I told my kids yesterday they had to be ready to play four quarters.”

Wayne’s zone frustrated the Colts through most of the first half. Wayne led 25-24 at halftime. West found an answer in the third quarter.

“We were freelancing too much,” Kelley said. “Once we started running our stuff a little bit more and being a little more patient, we got a 10-point lead in the third quarter and then they come down and knock down some 3s, and they’re right back in it.”

After Wayne erased the 10-point lead using mostly the 3-point shot — the Cardinals made 11 from beyond the arc — the Colts remained patient.

“They had us frustrated,” Kelley said. “There’s no doubt about that, but our kids didn’t quit. They stepped up. They fought.”

The Colts led 46-44 going into the fourth quarter and hit a drought. They battled back, and a pair of Elliott free throws with 2:23 left made it 52-51. After another Wayne 3-point basket, a Polson jumper tied it again at 54-54 with 1:28 remaining.

The Cardinals were unable to get anything going on the offensive end and called a time-out with 44.9 seconds left. The Colts managed to force a turnover with 21.9 left, giving them a chance to hold the ball for the final shot.

“I’m not stupid. I know whose hands to put the ball in for that last shot,” Kelley said. “(Polson) is a special player. We’re going to give it to him and give him a chance to be our hero every night.”

And Polson was the hero Wednesday night, driving to the basket and scoring a bucket with 2.5 seconds left. Confusion along the baseline caused the Cardinals to get a time-out with only .5 seconds left on the clock. After a short conversation between officials, it stayed that way.

Wayne’s throw downcourt was slapped away.

Even though Polson made the final shot, there were plenty of other heroes for West throughout the game.

“Jarrod’s a great player,” Kelley said. “But we’ve got good basketball players around him. Tonight, David stepped up. Gus (Sherrow) stepped up. I thought Bradley Strait gave us good minutes tonight. Hopefully, those guys bring it Monday night, but if not, I’m confident someone else will step up to take their place.”

Polson finished with 17 points while Elliott and Sherrow each added 15. The Colts were perfect from the free-throw line, making all nine attempts.

Kyle Hopper paced the Cardinals with 16 points. Gavin Dunagan added 13, and Austin Shearer tossed in 12.

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