Despite trailing at the halftime break on Saturday, the Todd County Central boys’ basketball team rode a career night from Anthony Johnson to a 59-42 comeback win over Cloverport. With a short turnaround from a lopsided loss to Logan County on Friday, the Rebels rebounded to get their first win of the season and send the Aces to their seventh-straight defeat.
Johnson scored the first 4 points of the game and 7 of the Rebels’ 8 in the first quarter, but Cloverport’s Austin Hedges hit a 3-pointer and converted a 3-point play on the way to 9 points and a 13-8 lead after one.
The Rebels trailed by 6 midway through the second quarter after a short jumper by Hedges, but Johnson scored twice inside the final two minutes to get Todd Central within 3 at 25-22. However, Hedges wasn’t done, knocking down his fourth 3 of the half to restore the 6-point cushion.
Todd Central scored the first 6 points out of the break, including a Johnson steal and layup and a baseline jumper by Logan Burgess, to tie the game at 28-28 two minutes into the third. The Rebels finally pulled ahead after an Amari Andrews layup but trailed by a point after Cloverport’s Payton Blair scored on a layup.
Todd Central’s Jamison Glass took over with 5 points in a little over a minute before Preston Rager was fouled on a layup with a 2-point edge. Rager couldn’t continue and Burgess shot the free throws, connecting on both for a 41-37 Rebel lead with a quarter to play.
While they’ve let fourth-quarter leads slip on a couple of occasions this season, the final eight minutes were all Todd Central on Saturday. Johnson scored the first 4 points of the quarter and Burgess followed with a bucket to stretch the lead to double figures at 47-37. The Aces’ only field goal of the quarter came with 4:19 to go to trim it to 9, but the Rebels scored the final 8 points of the game to secure the win.
Johnson’s career-high 22 led all scorers, followed for the Rebels by Burgess with 11. Preston Moore just missed double figures with 9.
Austin Hedges led the Aces with 19 but was held scoreless by the Rebels in the second half. Farris also reached double figures with 11.
Cloverport 13 15 9 5 — 42
Todd Central 8 14 19 18 — 59
Cloverport (0-8) — Hedges 19, Farris 11 Lagadinos 8, Blair 2, Poole 2
Todd Central (1-6) — Johnson 22, Burgess 11, Moore 9, Glass 7, Andrews 4, M. Johnson 2, Rager 2, Brandon 2
