BY BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
PIKEVILLE — Martin County stormed past Phelps 100-72 on Saturday. The victory sets up a showdown against Floyd Central on Monday in the 15th Region Tournament semifinals.
Saturday’s high-scoring matchup unfolded at Pike County Central. A lively crowd was on hand proudly displaying their sleeves in support of the “Tattoo Mafia.”
Coach Jason “JJ” James’ Cardinals wasted no time making their mark. Just 10 seconds into the game, freshman Bryson Dials pulled up from deep and drained a 3-pointer. Moments later, senior Parker Watts capitalized on an inbound pass from the baseline, sinking another 3 from the corner to give Martin County an early 5-2 lead.
Coach James sent his squad into a full-court press to force a turnover.
Senior Brayden Estep kicked the pass over to classmate Peyton Davis, who drained the corner 3 for the Cards to start the game 3-3 from behind the arc.
Coming out of a Phelps timeout, James put his team in a half-court trap with Davis and Dials applying pressure out top. Dials came away with it for an easy basket. On the ensuing possession, Davis connected again from deep to keep the ball rolling.
Phelps battled back to make it a four-point deficit before Watts halted the Hornets momentum with the shooter’s bounce on a long two. An Estep steal led to him dishing a pass to Dials, who then rewarded Estep in return for a shot from downtown.
Junior Eli Mills snatched the rock and sliced through for a basket. The Cards jumped back out to an 11-point lead.
Martin County was ahead 16 points in the second quarter before Phelps cut the score to 40-33 with 1:28 left in the half.
Davis came out of the timeout to convert the old-fashioned three-point play.
The Cards ended the half on a 7-0 run after Watts sunk two from the charity stripe. The duo of Dials and freshman Aiden Copeland forced a Hornets turnover for a Dials bucket on the other end heading into the break.
After taking the floor for the second half, junior Devan Maynard turned on the jets for a basket. He shook off the dust after early foul trouble in the game and exploded for seven points in the third.
Martin County began to run away with it and went into the final period with a 73-50 lead.
Mills turned the heat up and came alive in the fourth when he knocked down four treys from deep and sent the Cards into the second round of the 15th.
“We played a really good second half,” Coach James said. “I thought we moved the ball really well.”
With five Cardinals in double figures, the offense was brewing.
Watts finished the night with a double-double of 31 points and 15 rebounds. He dished out five assists and had one steal.
Dials fired in 18 points and shared the rock eight times. He picked six Hornets pockets and pulled down six boards.
Davis, who joined the 1000-point club during the game, hit for 15 after shooting 66.7% from downtown. The 57th District championship player of the game grabbed three rebounds and had an assist.
Mills finished with 14 points after going 4-6 from 3-point range. He also had three steals and three assists.
“Eli came off the bench to knock down some big shots,” Coach James said, acknowledging Mills’ explosive performance.
Maynard had a great all-around performance with 11 points, eight rebounds, one steal and an assist.
Estep played some limited minutes due to an injury but managed to score six points, pull down three boards off the glass, pick up two steals and hand out an assist.
Copeland sank a trey for three points off the bench and dished out a dime.
Senior Aiden Armstrong tickled the twine for two points.
Even though Martin County is the tournament favorite, the coach says the squad must keep their eyes set on the prize. With teams leaving it all on the floor, no matchup is a cakewalk at this time of the year.
“We just have to stay focused and take it one game at a time,” said James.
Martin County (20-8) has sights set on Floyd Central (12-18) with a Monday night matchup at 8:15 p.m. at Pike County Central.