The Hopkinsville boys’ basketball team bounced back in a big way from Tuesday’s loss to UHA, pasting visiting Hopkins County Central 77-40 on Friday night at Tiger Gym. The Tigers jumped out to an 11-2 lead and were never threatened, improving their record to 5-2. The Storm drop their second-straight to slip to 2-3 overall.
A Don Victor layup off an assist from James Nicholas gave the Tigers a 9-point advantage only 2 minutes into the contest. After a timeout, Hopkins Central answered with 4-straight points by Blasin Moore, but after 2 free throws by Victor, the Tigers led 17-8 after one quarter.
A steal and dunk by Jacarius Burks gave Hoptown its first double-digit cushion early in the second quarter. Tigers’ big man Jamarion Sharp blocked a Storm dunk attempt, before scoring at the other end to stretch the lead to 15. In the final minute of the half, Kyren Palmer drilled a 3-pointer and Reece Jesse beat the buzzer with a lay in to give the Tigers a 37-16 lead at the break.
Any hope for a Hopkins Central comeback was crushed early in the second half, with Nicholas scoring 7 in a row for the Tigers to build a 46-16 advantage. A 3-pointer by Ethan Putty trimmed the lead to 21, but that would be as close as the Storm would get.
With just over 5 minutes to play in the game, Nicholas converted a 3-point play to restore the 30-point lead at 63-33, signaling the end of the night for the Tigers’ starters. Tefrell Toliver closed the game with 7 points over the last 4 minutes for Hopkinsville.
Nicholas’ 23 points led all scorers, followed by Victor with 14. Burks finished with 10, and Toliver scored 9. The Tigers shot 12-15 from the free throw line.
Putty scored 8 of his 13 in the first half to lead the Storm, with Moore also reaching double figures with 11.
Hopkinsville is off for almost a week before going on the road to play in the Owensboro Invitational Tournament. The Tigers play hosts Owensboro on Thursday, followed by Monroe County on Friday and Owensboro Catholic on Saturday.
