By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Brossart boys’ basketball players were pumping their fists into the air and hugging each other after their 47-45 win over neighboring rival Campbell County on Friday before a capacity crowd in the Campbell Middle School gym.
But the winning team’s coach had a more subdued reaction to the victory after watching the Mustangs let a 10-point lead slip away in the closing minutes.
“We played really well for 28 minutes and then we didn’t play well for the last four minutes,” said Brossart coach Mike Code. “Fortunately, we built up enough of a cushion that we were able to hang on. And that’s all it was, us hanging on.”
Dramatic finishes are nothing new in games between the two 37th District teams. This is the fourth time in the last seven years that the game now known as the Crosstown Classic has been decided by three points or less, and two of those went into overtime.
It looked like Friday’s game would turn out differently when Brossart took a 40-30 lead with 5:20 left in the fourth quarter. But Campbell County used a trapping pressure defense to force turnovers on four of the Mustangs’ next six possessions.
That flipped the momentum and Campbell County tied the score, 44-44, when senior center Matt Wilson swished a pair of free throws with 44 seconds remaining.
After Brossart senior guard Logan Schultz made two free throws to put his team back on top, Campbell County senior guard Trent Mcgovney hit a foul shot to make it 46-45.
A steal by Brossart senior guard John Ridder and a free throw by teammate Jacob Zai gave the Mustangs a 47-45 lead with eight seconds left. Campbell County rushed up the court and got the ball to junior guard Garren Bertsch for a 3-point shot, but his shot hit off the rim and Brossart chased down the rebound as time expired.
It was the fifth consecutive win for the 11-5 Mustangs. The Camels’ record dipped to 6-9 with the loss.
Campbell County coach Aric Russell said the game might have turned out differently if his team hadn’t missed seven free throws during their fourth quarter rally.
“We battled back and didn’t quit,” Russell said. “The free throws definitely killed us, missing seven or eight of them down the stretch. But Brossart played good and we played hard at the end. Either team could’ve won this one.”
Brossart senior forward Jackson Crawford was the game’s leading scorer with 20 points. He also did a good job on defense, helping hold Wilson to 11 points, nine below his average.
“I thought I played well defensively,” Crawford said. “My coach told me I had to front Wilson and I thought I got the job done pretty well with the exception of a few times. Offensively, I’ve just got to let the game come to me and I thought that’s what I did (Friday).”
Wilson picked up two fouls in the first quarter and his scoring opportunities were somewhat limited after that because his team committed 17 turnovers during the game. Brossart took advantage of the Camels’ mistakes by scoring 18 points off turnovers. Most of those came in the first half and the Mustangs had a 25-20 lead at the break.
“With Wilson in the middle, it’s hard to score on them at the rim,” Code said of the Camels’ 6-foot-9, 240-pound center. “So it was really important for us to score in transition and on run-outs. I thought that was a big factor for us.”
Campbell County junior forward Cole Hegyi also got into early foul trouble. But he came on strong at the end, scoring eight of his team-high 14 point during the Camels’ late rally.
Brossart ended up shooting 38 percent (16 of 42) from the field compared to Campbell County’s 41.1 percent (14 of 34).
BROSSART 11 14 10 12 – 47
CAMPBELL CO. 10 10 10 15 – 45
BROSSART (11-3): Rolf 0 2 2, Zai 3 4 12, Crawford 9 2 20, Hickman 1 2 4, Schultz 1 3 5, Kremer 1 0 2, Bell 1 0 2. Totals: 16 11 47.
CAMPBELL CO. (6-9): Hegyi 5 4 14, Mcgovney 1 3 5, Wilson 3 5 11, Clos 1 0 3, Bertsch 4 0 9, Teegarden 0 3 3. Totals: 14 15 45.
Three-pointers: B – Crawford 2, Zai 2. CC – Bertsch 2, Clos.
Wanted to let the Sports Department know that TJ Moore, a 6’0 speedy Wide Receiver/Kick Returner from Bishop Brossart, has committed to play football at Thomas More College in the Fall.