The top-seeded Park Hills Central Rebels squared off against the Ste. Genevieve Dragons on Saturday night in the Conference Championship game, but at the 3:45 mark of the second quarter, Dragons star Ricky Hunter went down with a catastrophic injury. The game was suspended and Hunter was removed via ambulance, much to the dismay of both teams and all in attendance.
Apparently Hunter took a blow to the chest, hyperventilated, passed out and was taken to the nearest hospital immediately. He has since been released and is recovering, but both schools felt it prudent to postpone the game for a later date. The situation smacks of the Damar Hamlin tragedy in the NFL, and shows the compassion and understanding of both teams and the officiating crew.
The game is set to resume this Saturday at noon, and will pick up exactly where it left off at the 3:45 mark of the second quarter with Central leading Ste. Gen 33-17.
With the Championship game now slated to resume, we would be remiss if we didn’t mention how these running Rebels got to this point in the tournament.
After a first-round bye, Central was set to take on Farmington last Monday and they wasted no time gaining an advantage. After big threes from Caden Casey and Kannon Harlow, the rebels found themselves up 14-7. They would carry that momentum into the next frame, and then some, draining 19 more and holding the Knights to a mere eight. Kendall Horton had seven in the quarter and sent his squad into the locker room with a healthy 33-15 lead.
Then in the third, Jobe Bryant came alive after a quiet first half and drained seven points to keep the momentum going. Combine that with seven more from Casey, and Central won the quarter battle 18-13 to extend their lead. Farmington was pretty much dead to rights at this point, and the Rebels just smothered the Knights, and put this one to bed. Collin McMullen hit a pair of threes and Park Hills closed it out 64-32, doubling up Farmington.
This was a complete team effort, and the offense was truly spread out. Bryant led the way with just 14 points, but that’s because everyone got a taste. Casey was the only other player in double figure with 12, but Harlow hit three from downtown, and McMullen had his two in the final frame. Horton had seven and Zack Boyd had six.
That win vaulted the Rebels into the semis, and they would take on new Conference rival, Valle Catholic. With recent football history still likely lingering, both of these teams came out firing in the first, but the Rebels had bigger guns. They dropped 25 to the Warriors’ 14 and generated a nice early lead. Mason Williams had a big quarter with a three, a pair of buckets and a free-throw.
The next eight minutes would follow pretty much the same game-script, as Central found 20 more points and Valle duplicated their total from the previous frame. Bryant led the way with eight points on four buckets in the quarter and the Rebels took a 45-28 lead into the break.
The second half kicked off with another 20-spot from the Rebs, and the Warriors could only muster 16. It was their best quarter of the game, but they still saw their deficit grow. That made it 65-44, and seemingly a closed case, but Central kept humming. They poured in exactly 20 for the third straight quarter and kept Valle to just 14, sealing the deal at 85-58.
That inverse score wound up being pretty lopsided in favor of Park Hills, and the home crowd loved every minute of it. It meant the Rebels were headed to the Finals, and showed just how dangerous they can be when they are clicking on all fronts. Especially against a talented Valle squad.
Bryant was big in this one as well with is 24 points, but there were four Central players in double figures. Williams had 13, Horton had 12 and Boyd cracked double-digits with 10. Casey just missed with eight on four buckets from the paint.
So, the Rebels were set to host the Conference Finals, and they did, but as everyone knows it was tragically cut short. All are surely hoping the situation with Ste. Gen’s scorer, Hunter, is all clear skies and this game resumes as planned on Saturday at noon.
Wishing all the best to both sides.
