LEXINGTON, Ky. – While the Alabama Crimson Tide were scoring 113 points in the NCAA Sweet 16, and the Indiana Pacers were putting 162 on the Washington Wizards in an NBA contest, the Cooper Jaguars boys basketball team won their Kentucky state tournament opener by doing what they do best: Good, old-fashioned, hard-nosed defense.Cooper outlasted Henderson County 50-35 in the first round of the UK HealthCare Kentucky High School Athletic Association Boys Basketball Sweet 16 Thursday night at Rupp Arena.
Cooper (24-5) advances to Friday night’s 8:30 p.m. quarterfinal against Great Crossing.
Henderson finishes 25-7.“To win championships and really tough games, there are no gimmicks,” Cooper head coach Tim Sullivan said. “You got to be able to sit down and guard and trust one another.
They fight every single day.”Cooper held Henderson to 42 percent shooting (13 of 31). Several of those buckets came in transition.
Cooper forced 16 turnovers.The Jaguars held Henderson’s leading scorer, senior guard Cooper Davenport, without a point in the game. With senior Andy Johnson guarding him most of the time, Davenport, a sharp-shooting guard, went 0 for 5 shooting in the game, 0 of 3 from 3-point range.
Davenport averaged 14.3 points with 82 made 3-pointers coming in.Henderson, averaging five 3-pointers made per game, was 0 for 7 from behind the arc.
“A ton of credit to them,” Davenport said. “They’re very athletic. They did a great job.
”Johnson credited Cooper sophomor.
