Late rally lifts Alice Lloyd to 83-81 victory over Campbellsville-Harrodsburg

Harrodsburg, KY: The Alice Lloyd Eagles journeyed to Harrodsburg, in central Kentucky, to face the undefeated and home-standing University of Campbellsville-Harrodsburg Pioneers in the Visit Harrodsburg Classic. The Eagles trailed the majority of the contest but came through with clutch plays down the stretch to pull out a hard-fought 83-81 victory.

In the opening half, UCH used the inside power of 6'7 Warner Bryan and 6'9 Evan Frederick to grab an early advantage. In need of a spark, ALC saw senior guard Brady Nelson catch fire to keep his mates close. Despite 16 big points from Nelson, the Pioneers would hold a 45-39 lead heading into the dressing room for intermission. 

In the second half, Harrodsburg fought to keep a lead, and they held it most of the way. Fortunately for the Caney Creek faithful, senior forward Ben Soumahoro hit several big buckets in the paint to keep his club within striking distance. On the perimeter, senior guard Jacob Curry and sophomore forward Jackson Tackett combined for five huge trifectas to lead an Eagle resurgence.

With 0:58 remaining, two big free throws from senior forward Jared Strickland gave the Caney Creek crew an 81-76 lead. UCH would then see Warner drain an important bomb at 0:48 to slice the deficit to two (81-79). Then, after an Eagle miss and foul on the ensuing possession, Pioneer guard Elijah Frye knotted the contest at 81-81 with his free throws.

Electing not to call time out, the Pippa Passes posse brought the rock downcourt, holding the ball for the final shot. ALC would go to Strickland, who drove to the paint and found Nelson in the corner. The senior faked his man and was tripped on his way to the basket with 0:02 ticks remaining

The veteran guard cooly stepped to the line and swished both charity tosses to give his squad the 83-81 lead. Campbellsville would get off a desperation shot to win, but it was short as time expired.

For Alice Lloyd (5-1), five players reached double figures. They were led on the night by Nelson with 20 points on 7-10 field goals. Soumahoro, who was in major foul trouble most of the second half, still came up with 16 points and 4 rebounds. Curry drained half of his 8 trifectas to deliver 14 points. Tackett produced 11 points and led the club with 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Strickland chipped in with 10 points and grabbed 2 steals.

The Eagles shot 42.6% (29-68) from the floor, 37.5% (9-24) from long range, and 76.2% (16-21) from the charity stripe. They registered 35 rebounds, 11 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks.

UC-Harrodsburg (5-1) was led by Warner with 21 points and Frye with 18. Their squad shot 49.1% (28-57) from the field, 40.9% (9-24) from behind the arc, and 80% (16-20) from the charity line. They added 38 rebounds, 22 assists, 6 blocks, and 3 steals. The difference in the game was that the victors only committed 5 turnovers, and they outscored Harrodsburg 24-6 off of those turnovers.