COLONY — With two minutes left in the third quarter, Crest High junior Hunter Frazell sank a key 3-pointer, which opened up a game against Uniontown that until that point had been nip and tuck.
After a somewhat ragged, turnover-heavy first half for both teams, Crest’s excellent guard play spurred a second-half momentum swing that even the Eagle’s tireless fullcourt press couldn’t extinguish.
“It wasn’t pretty,” head coach Travis Hermreck said of his team’s 54 -40 win over the Eagles, “but I’m as happy as can be.”
Frazell led the Lancers with 18, which included a second 3-pointer quick on the heels of the first, and 10 made free throws, nine of which came in the fourth quarter.
Hoping to reverse Crest’s momentum, the Eagles relied on a full-court press most of the second half. The Lancers’ skilled guard play, though, led by Frazell, picked it apart nearly every time.
“Pressing him is kind of a roll of the dice,” said Hermreck. “In the open floor, he’s good. He’s hard to guard; he sees the floor well. He did a great job of breaking down the defense.”
Senior Austin Green was the night’s second leading scorer — and Crest’s homecoming king — contributing 16.
Uniontown, led by 6-5 junior Tyler Allen’s 10 points, had a number of open looks in the post late in the game but could not convert.
In the end, as the Lancers swung the ball around the perimeter, playing for time, the Eagles were forced to foul. The Lancers made them pay, hitting 14 of 18 from the line.
“We played far from perfect,” Hermreck said, “but we’re not built to play perfect. We’re built to play hard, and we did that.”
Next up is a rematch with Southern Coffey County, on the road, a team which handed the Lancers a two-point loss during their season-opener.
Crest 54, Uniontown 40
Uniontown (10-11-8-11—40) (FG/3pt-FT-T-TP): Schafer 0-0-1-0, Bradbury 3/1-0-5-9, O’Brien 1-1-2-3, Coyan 1-1-2-3, Kuns 0-4-4-4, Elder 1-2-4-4, Allen 5-0-4-10, Sutterby 3-1-2-7. TOTALS: 14/1-9-24-40.
Crest (11-11-12-20—54) (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Frazell 1/2-10-3-18, Green 5-6-0-16, Godderz 4-0-5-8, Strickler 0-0-2-0, Brallier 0-2-2-2, Troxel 2-0-3-4, Ramsey 2-2-4-6. TOTALS: 14/2-20-19-54.
Lancers beat Uniontown at homecoming
