By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
LEXINGTON – Ben Weyer took his award-winning show on the road Wednesday and led his Newport Central Catholic team to its first state tournament victory since 1975 on the biggest stage in Kentucky high school basketball.
Weyer showed why local coaches voted him 9th Region Player of the Year with an impressive performance in NewCath’s 48-33 win over Louisville Trinity in the opening round of the Whitaker Bank/KHSAA Boys Sweet 16 state tournament before a crowd of 9,773 at Rupp Arena.
The 6-foot-7 senior forward’s final statistics included 19 points, 13 rebounds, four blocked shots, four assists and two steals. He was 7-for-12 from the field with two 3-point goals.
“I think Ben’s as good as anybody in the state,” said NewCath coach Ron Dawn. “He just did everything for us, and he’s done that all year. Some people around the state haven’t had a chance to see him, but the way he played (Wednesday) is the way he’s played all year for us.”
Weyer’s four blocks and 12 rebounds on the defensive backboard had a lot to do with Trinity shooting 26 percent (12 of 46) from the field and finishing with its lowest point total of the year.
In the second quarter, the Shamrocks went 0-for-12 from the field and weren’t able to score any points during that eight-minute span with Weyer looming under the basket.
“He’s got great presence in there and great timing on blocking shots,” Trinity coach Mike Szabo said. “I thought we did take it too deep (to the basket) at times and gave them four or five blocked shots that we shouldn’t have. But he’s a really good player and I give him a lot of credit.”
In the post-game interview session, Weyer was asked how important it was for him to have a big game in his state tournament debut.
“It wasn’t really that important to me,” said the Bellarmine University recruit. “I just wanted to come out and get a victory, and that’s what we did. I’m pretty happy with that.”
The win moves NewCath (29-4) into the quarterfinal round on Friday to play Murray (30-5) at 12 p.m. If the Thoroughbreds win that game, it will put their team in the state semifinals for the first time since 1953.
The last time NewCath made it to the Sweet 16 state tournament was 2000 so none of the current players had ever been involved in a post-season game at Rupp Arena before Wednesday.
That was evident in the opening minutes when Trinity jumped out to an 11-2 lead. But then the Thoroughbreds scored 20 unanswered points before their opponents got a field goal with 4:32 remaining in the third quarter.
That basket didn’t actually break NewCath’s momentum. The Thoroughbreds ran off eight straight points after that to open up a 30-13 lead.
Early in the fourth quarter, Trinity pulled to within 34-23 when junior forward David Burton was fouled while attempting a 3-point shot and made all three of his free throws. But NewCath closed out the game with a 14-10 run led by junior guard Luke Moeves, who scored 10 points in the final six minutes.
“I’m so happy for our guys and the effort they put forth,” coach Dawn said after getting the first state tournament win of his career. “(Trinity) is extremely well coached and they’re a good defensive team, so I’m really proud of our guys for hanging in there, especially in an environment like this.”
NewCath shot 42.9 percent (15 of 35) from the field with Weyer and sophomore guard Brennan Hall getting 12 of their team’s 15 field goals. Hall made three 3-point shots to account for nine of his 13 points.
The Thoroughbreds had a 30-24 rebounding advantage with senior guard Eric Anderson snagging seven. He also did a good job on defense, helping limit Trinity junior point guard Jacob King to seven points and one assist.
“My mind set was just keeping him in front of me and if he’s going up for a shot to get a hand up and then go rebound the ball,” Anderson said.
King was one of the Trinity players who had their shot whacked away by Weyer when they tried driving the lane to the basket in the first half.
“I think he really discouraged them from going in there after that,” Dawn said. “I don’t know how many (blocked shots) he had then, but it seems like he was getting one every time down the floor for awhile there.”
NEWCATH 7 13 12 16 — 48
TRINITY 11 0 7 15 — 33
NEWCATH (29-4): Weyer 7 3 19, Hall 5 0 13, Moeves 2 7 12, E. Anderson 1 0 2, Neff 0 2 2. Totals: 15 12 48.
TRINITY (29-7): Burton 2 3 9, Harris 2 0 4, Johnson 2 0 4, King 2 2 7, Schmitt 2 0 4, Rice 1 0 3, Rose 1 0 2. Totals: 12 5 33.
3-pointers: NC – Weyer 2, Hall 3, Moeves. T – Burton 2, King, Rice.
Whitaker Bank/KHSAA Boys State Basketball Tournament
at Rupp Arena, Lexington, Ky.
Wednesday – Upper bracket
Murray 62, Buckhorn 35
Newport Central Catholic 48, Louisville Trinity 33
Bowling Green 75, Elliott County 59
Lexington Dunbar 58, Mercer County 55
Thursday – Lower bracket
Lawrence County vs. Louisville Doss, 12 p.m.
South Laurel vs. Christian County, 1:30 p.m.
Mason County vs. Taylor County, 6:30 p.m.
South Oldham vs. Owensboro Catholic, 8 p.m.
Friday – Quarterfinals
Newport Central Catholic vs. Murray, 12 p.m.
Bowling Green vs. Lexington Dunbar, 1:30 p.m
Lower bracket games, 6:30 and 8 p.m.
Saturday – Semifinals
Upper bracket game, 6:30 p.m.
Lower bracket game, 8 p.m.
Sunday
Championship game, 2 p.m.