By Terry Boehmker
NKy Tribune sports reporter
Dixie Heights won its third consecutive 34th District boys’ basketball championship on Friday, but this one was a little more gratifying to coach Ken Chevalier.
After the Colonels defeated St. Henry, 77-62, in the district final on their home court, Chevalier pointed out that his team was not ranked among the top 10 in Northern Kentucky when the season began because it had only one returning starter.
“In my heart of hearts, I knew we were going to be better than what those pre-season rankings said and our kids have proved that throughout the year by going 19-10 against a really difficult schedule,” Chevalier said.
Two of the reasons for the Colonels’ success were evident on Friday when junior center Reed Bradfield and junior guard Hunter Meyer scored a combined total of 52 points in the district final.
Meyer, the team’s only returning starter from last season, finished with 24 points. He got six of his 10 field goals on drives to the basket.
Bradfield, one of the newcomers in the starting lineup, scored 28 points in the paint with most of his baskets coming off good passes from his teammates.
“When Reed Bradfield and Hunter Meyer play the way they did (Friday), anything is possible for this team,” Chevalier said.
Dixie Heights needed the inside-outside scoring combination provided by those two players to offset a career-high 35 points by St. Henry senior guard Adam Goetz. He got 21 of his team’s 35 points in the second half, but the Crusaders still fell behind.
Dixie Heights ended up shooting 51.9 percent (27 of 52) from the field compared to St. Henry’s 46 percent (23 of 50). The Colonels also had a 20-11 scoring advantage at the free throw line.
“You’ve got to give (Dixie Heights) credit, they exploited our weaknesses,” said St. Henry coach Dave Faust. “We don’t have a true post player so we try to have help there and didn’t get it. I wanted to go to zone, but once they got the lead they could just stand out there and hold the ball against us.”
The lead changed hands 12 times in the first half before either team made a run. St. Henry scored eight straight points to pull ahead, 23-16, early in the second quarter. The Colonels responded with a 15-4 spurt to take a 31-27 halftime lead.
In the final seconds of the second quarter, a Dixie Heights player launched a long shot that bounced off the backboard. But Meyer was there to get the rebound and score a stick-back basket as the horn sounded.
Dixie Heights came on strong once again in the third quarter and took a 46-34 lead on a driving basket by junior guard R.J. Schweiter. But St. Henry kept battling and sliced the margin to 56-48 early in the fourth quarter.
The Colonels got back in control with a 10-1 scoring run that put them ahead, 64-48, with less than four minutes remaining. Meyer scored six of those points on back-to-back possessions where he was fouled while scoring on a drive to the basket and then made the free throw.
“Coach kept telling us to keep attacking (the basket),” said Meyer, who was named most valuable player on the district all-tournament team. “That’s what I do best. At first, it was pretty hard, but then it got a little bit easier after the first half.”
Dixie Heights scored 11 of its final 13 points at the free throw line. Sophomore guard A.J. Plitzuweit made five of those foul shots to finish with 17 points.
Both district finalists receive berths in next week’s 9th Region tournament at BB&T Arena on the campus of Northern Kentucky University. This is the 16th consecutive year that Dixie Heights has qualified to compete in the eight-team regional. The draw to decide first-round matchups is scheduled for 9 a.m. Sunday at the arena.
“We’re happy to be there and happy to go in as a winner,” Chevalier said. “This is our 16th consecutive trip to the regional and we’re proud of that for our program.”
DIXIE HEIGHTS 12 19 16 30 — 77
ST. HENRY 13 14 11 24 – 62
DIXIE HEIGHTS (19-10): Meyer 10 3 24, Plitzuweit 5 5 17. Bradfield 11 6 28, Schweitzer 1 0 2, Brolly 0 2 2, Buechel 0 1 1, Cox 0 2 2, Thornberry 0 1 1. Totals: 27 20 77.
ST. HENRY (14-16): Williams 1 0 3, Goetz 11 9 35, Hannon 1 0 2, Maley 2 0 4, Wallenhorst 5 1 11, Machinski 1 1 3, Beechem 2 0 4. Totals: 23 11 62.
3-point goals: DH – Plitzuweit 2, Meyer. SH – Goetz 4, Williams.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Dixie Heights – Hunter Meyer (MVP), Reed Bradfield, A.J. Plitzuweit. St. Henry – Adam Goetz, Paul Wallenhorst. Ludlow – Kalib Mitchell. Lloyd – Blake Donovan. Villa Madonna – Thomas Schutzman.