By J. Trace Kirkwood
I'm getting too old to sit on bleachers for consecutive games. My back is aching tonight. I had another tough decision in the night cap at the Citizens First Bank Classic. Franklin-Simpson took on Mason County in the big gym while Bowling Green took on Christian Brothers High School from Memphis, Tennessee.
Everybody made some really bad assumptions about this team from Memphis. Because they are named Christian Brothers, everyone assumed that they were a religious academy with a weak team. Nothing could be farther from the truth. These guys had some good size and several good basketball players, and they gave the Purples everything they had.
Christian Brothers took an early lead on Bowling Green, and finished the first quarter with an 11-9 lead. The Purples fought back and had a 30-24 lead at halftime.
These two teams were a lot of fun to watch tonight because both like to push the ball up the court and attack the basket. A kid named Booher for Christian Brothers really caught my eye. I apologize for not having his first name because I never bought a program, and I couldn't hear his name when he went to the foul stripe. The kid is a good player and is unafraid to take the ball to the hoop. He had an impressive driving dunk in the second half with a couple of Purples in hot pursuit.
Bowling Green played sloppy during long stretches of the game. I find it amazing how some teams that press a lot hate to face pressure. You'd think they'd be used to it from practice, but sometimes it doesn't translate. The Purples don't like to be pressed, and they start playing frantically to get the ball up the court. They make bad passes compounded by bad decisions. I think they spend too much time looking for Behanan, and they need to relax and push the ball up the court and not worry where their star is.
DJ Ray does a good job with this, and he handles the ball well for a lanky guy. Ray has a quick move to the basket and has learned to take advantage of defenses sagging on Behanan. He's a good, smart ballplayer. Plus, Bowling Green is a young team this year. Ray along with Tommy Boyce and Joey "Gotta Getta" Gorman are the only seniors. They lost seven from last year's team.
I don't have the stats, but Chane Behanan was effective tonight. I understand he had a miserable game against Franklin-Simpson last week. What impressed me is that Behanan had a lot of blocked shots against Christian Brothers tonight. That's good defense.
Bowling Green grew a 13 point lead in the second half, but Christian Brothers came back and made it a game late, led by the Booher kid. He's a tough ballplayer, and I think he caught everyone's attention tonight. Late in the game, Brothers' point guard let DJ Ray get around him, which resulted in them picking up a foul in the paint. Booher didn't hesitate to let the point guard know that it was his job to keep players from slashing into the paint. That's good stuff.
Bowling Green hung on to win 64-59. The Purples are now 5-1 with a loss to Franklin-Simpson.
OBSERVATIONS
Fant-ing Spell: I saw George Fant at the Bowling Green game. He sat with the Kindred brothers from Metcalfe County. That's a lot of big fellows sitting in the bleachers. I can't wait for him and Behanan to go head-to-head this season...and next season.
Royals and Wildcats: I missed a good game between Mason County and Franklin-Simpson. The final was 52-50 with Mason County prevailing. That's a tough loss for the Wildcats. I think it's great that Bowling Green has two gyms and can have simultaneous games, but I always sense that I'm missing something big in whatever gym I'm not in. I was hoping for a Fourth Region sweep tonight.
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