Four players reached double figures and the Christian County boys’ basketball team stopped a four-game skid with a 67-52 victory over visiting Hopkinsville on Friday night. A third-quarter surge sent the Colonels to their second win of the season over the Tigers and a 2-1 8th-District record. Hopkinsville has a two-game winning streak ended and slips to 2-3 in district play.
Arthur McKnight got off to a strong start for the Tigers with 7 first-quarter points, helping them to a 14-8 advantage after he scored on a drive with :5 left. However, Bubba Leavell banked in a 3-pointer ahead of the buzzer to pull the Colonels to within 3.
The Tigers opened the second on a 6-0 spurt, including two layups in traffic by McKnight, but the Colonels countered with a 10-2 run and only trailed 22-21 after Mikeon Mathis knocked down a 3 with 3:00 left in the half. Christian County’s Darrin Bussell hit a 3 to tie the game at 27-27 with 2:25 to go, but Hoptown led by a point at the break.
The Colonels put together the decisive run of the game early in the third quarter, using a 15-1 surge to build a 47-32 cushion after a 3-point play by Mathis. Stephen Bussell and Kobe Dillard each had a 3-pointer during the run, and the Colonels outscored the Tigers 21-8 to take a 12-point lead into the fourth.
Hopkinsville fought back to within 8 after a McKnight 3-pointer with 5:26 to play, but Stephen Bussell connected from 3-point range on consecutive possessions to push the margin back to 14. McKnight added 6 more down the closing stretch for the Tigers, but the Colonel lead was double-digits the rest of the way.
Hopkinsville 14 15 8 15 — 52
Christian County 11 17 21 18 — 67
Hopkinsville (7-13) — McKnight 25, Victor 9
Christian County (9-13) — Mathis 17, S. Bussell 15, Dillard 12, White 12
