Published: March 20, 2009 08:13 am      

Elliott clears Round 1 hurdle

The Lions meet Shelby Valley tonight

LEXINGTON — When Elliott County beat Anderson County at the Kentucky Preps Classic in January, former University of Kentucky coach Joe B. Hall proclaimed Elliott his all-time favorite high school team.

Judging by the noise level from a Sweet Sixteen first-round record crowd of 21,048 Thursday night in Rupp Arena, Hall isn’t alone.

Jonathan Ferguson put on an electric shooting display early, then the Faulkner twins took over in the second half as the Lions turned away stubborn Anderson County 74-61.

The Bearcats shot 50 percent from the field and hung in the game until the final minutes before bowing out.

“Elliott County is 31-2 for a reason,’’ said Anderson County coach Glen Drury. “When they had to match a basket or run, they did. They made defensive plays and stops on us. You’ve got to give them all the credit for what they did.’’

Elliott County won its earlier meeting in overtime, but this time the stakes were much higher in front of a huge audience. Thursday’s attendance eclipsed the previous high of 21,032 from 1987.

Ferguson had them ooohing and awwwing by lighting up the place for 20 first-half points. The 16th Region’s all-time scoring king and one of the tops in state history put on a royal show.

The 6-foot-2 forward has never been hotter on a big stage than during a one-minute span of the second quarter. Ferguson buried three consecutive deep 3-pointers, one while nearly falling out of bounds, to give his team an eight-point halftime advantage.

"We knew he could get hot,’’ Drury said. “He can make shots with people in his face.’’

Elliott County coach Rick Mays has seen it from Ferguson many times before.

“We have watched him since the seventh grade,’’ Mays said. “With some players you could call it a forced shot. It’s not a forced shot with him.’’

Ferguson finished with 24 points.

In the second half, Ethan and Evan Faulkner carried the load. They combined for Elliott County’s first 16 points after the intermission to keep the Lions in front.

Ethan scored 16 of his 20 points in the final two quarters and Evan had nine of his 14 during the same span.

“They are very hard to guard,’’ Drury said of the Lions, who also got 13 points from sophomore Timmy Knipp. “They are a team of runs.’’

Anderson County (24-6) refused to go away, however, and closed to within 58-55 with just under six minutes remaining. Ferguson answered with a putback and Ethan Faulkner followed with a steal and layup.

Anderson County got a basket from Jacob Russell, who led the team with 20 points, but Elliott County scored the next seven to put the game away.

Knipp also had four blocked shots and his defense helped limit Anderson County standout C.J. Penny to 10 points on 5-for-14 shooting.

Elliott County earned a rematch tonight against Shelby Valley, the only Kentucky team to defeat the Lions this season.

Shelby Valley (31-4) got past Mason County 51-44 earlier Thursday night for its first-ever Sweet Sixteen victory.

“That’s a big one,’’ said Wildcats coach Jason Booher. “Shelby Valley has never won in Rupp. To be the first team is tremendous.’’

The 15th Region champs overcame a long-range blitz from Russ Middleton, who hit five 3-pointers to stake Mason County to a six-point halftime lead. Middleton finished with seven treys — two shy of the tournament record — but Shelby Valley held the Royals to 27-percent shooting from the field.

Point guard Elisha Justice made a key fourth-quarter basket and paced the Wildcats with 22 points.

ROCKY STANLEY can be reached at rstanley@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2671.