Great Crossing defeats Montgomery County 70-49, advances to Sweet 16 title vs. Bowling Green
With No. 14 Bowling Green picking up a win over No. 12 South Oldham earlier in the day, half of the KHSAA Boys’ Sweet 16 state championship game was set. All we needed was to see the result of No. 2 Great Crossing and No. 15 Montgomery County.
It would be the Warhawks who would earn the 70-49 victory, sending the Indians packing as Great Crossing moves on to its first-ever state championship game appearance. Kentucky signee Malachi Moreno had 26 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks in the win.
After coming up short in the semifinals to Travis Perry‘s Lyon County squad a year ago, Great Crossing is one win away from hoisting the trophy.
Things started off as about as competitive as could be. It was evident that Montgomery County wanted to stretch the Warhawks’ defense as much as they could, playing a spread offense and looking to attack from deep. Nine of the Indians’ 12 first-quarter shots came from beyond the three-point line. It was 12-11 Great Crossing through one.
Montgomery County focused on guarding Moreno defensively, stacking bodies in the paint as they tried to prevent the 7-foot-1 star from finding his groove. Of course, that’s easier said than done, and it doesn’t help that seniors Gage Richardson and Vince Dawson can put on a clinic offensively as well.
It’s no fluke that the Warhawks came into this game 33-4 on the year.
Great Crossing had a 22-16 lead with 2:11 to go in the first half, but a 6-0 Indians run would get them a 23-22 lead with 33 seconds to go. After a Cayden Reed three, it was 26-24 Indians at the half.
Whatever Warhawks head coach Steve Page said in the locker room must have worked. Great Crossing came out of the break on a 7-0 run to get out to a 31-26 lead. Montgomery County refused to lay down but heading into the final quarter of play, it was 49-39 Warhawks. After scoring 24 total first-half points, Moreno and Co. scored 25 points in the third quarter alone.
Great Crossing was able to maintain that lead and put the finishing touches on what would be their 34th victory of the season. It didn’t come easy, but in the end, their overwhelming size and talent carried them to what is currently their biggest win in program history.
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“We came in the locker room down two at halftime, and we were in the same position last year,” Moreno said postgame. “So, just try to come out, keep playing through it, and shots just kept falling.”
Later on, he added, “We kind of just decided that we didn’t want to go home today. I think us just being seniors, we have that mentality that we weren’t ready to be done with high school basketball yet. That definitely helped us a lot.”
After leading Great Crossing to the state title game, Moreno touched on why he chose to stay a Warhawk rather than go to some prep school to get him ready for his impending collegiate career.
“Every single person that has been along in the journey, they’ve all been in Georgetown. I kind of really had no reason to leave,” he added. “These three up here with me [Page, Richardson, and Dawson] push me to be better every single day.”
Now, the state championship game is set. It’ll be Great Crossing and Bowling Green at 7:30 p.m. ET back inside Rupp Arena. The Warhawks seek their first-ever state title, while the Purples will be playing for their second state title and first since 2017.
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