Beech Tree News Network

Despite two regular season losses to Grayson County, the Butler County Bears won when it counted the most with a 53-49 victory over the Cougars in the 12th District Championship game on Friday night in Leitchfield.

With four players in double-figures, solid rebounding, timely baskets, and clutch free throw shooting down the stretch, the #4 seed Bears proved too much for the #4 seed Cougars on their home floor.  Junior guard Baylee Anderson led the way for Butler County with 18 points; junior forward/center Blake Graham had 15 points along with 10 rebounds; junior guard Rex Henderson and sophomore guard Will Moore had 10 each.  For Butler County, it was their third 12th District title in four years.

The Bears shot 45.7 percent (21/46) in field goals; 36.4 percent (4/11) from the 3-point line; and were 7 of 10 from the free throw line for 70 percent.

For Butler County, Blake Graham was named to the 12th District All-Academic Team; Rex Henderson was named to the 12th District All-Season Team; Baylee Anderson and Will Moore joined Henderson and Graham on the 12th District All-Tournament Team.  

Butler County got off to a quick start with a 13-8 advantage at the end of the first quarter.  Baskets by Graham, Henderson and Anderson paced the Bears' early scoring efforts.  Ahead 10-8, Anderson drilled a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the quarter to give Butler County a 5-point lead.

The second quarter proved to be the opposite of the first quarter as the Cougars tallied a 13-8 margin, including a 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game at 21 apiece at halftime.  Moore had sparked the Bears early in the quarter with a pair of quick baskets before Grayson rallied.  

Early in the third quarter, Grayson took its first lead at 23-21 since briefly holding a 2-0 advantage in the opening moments of the game.  The Cougars moved ahead 29-26 before a Will Moore basket narrowed the deficit t0 29-28.  Graham gave the Bears the lead at 4:44 and Henderson extended the lead to three at 32-29.  However, the biggest fireworks of the third quarter were reserved for Baylee Anderson, who drilled three 3-pointers in the second half of the quarter to help give the Bears an impressive 43-37 lead by quarter's end.

Grayson County rallied to tie the score at 43-43 at the 6:30 mark in the fourth quarter before a pair of free throws by Anderson and a basket by Graham pushed the Bears back on top at 47-43.  But, the Cougars fought back again to tie the game at 47-47 with 2:36 remaining.  A Henderson basket at 1:15 gave the Bears a 49-47 lead - a lead they would not relinquish.  Henderson sank a pair of free throws with .50 seconds left and Graham sealed the deal with a pair of free throws with 14.9 seconds remaining to give the Bears a 53-49 win and district championship.  

"It feels awesome," said Rex Henderson in an interview on WLBQ 101.5 following the game.  "The guys came together for the win ... nobody expected it." 

"We felt no pressure," said Baylee Anderson, who credited defensive adjustments as one of the reasons for the Bears success in the district tournament.  

"We've been preparing all week for this and we knew we could beat them if we played hard," said Blake Graham.  "It's always good to beat Grayson; it's a good feeling."  

"I just didn't want it to be our last game," said lone senior Austin Nave  "It feels amazing.  We just had to fight hard and we knew we could do it."

Coach Calvin Dockery said the win "feels pretty good" especially considering some of the challenges his team has faced this season.

"We went through some adversity this year and we kept telling our kids that they had to 'buy in' to what we were doing," said Dockery.  "We told them to stay the course and good things would happen."  

As far as preparing for the championship game, Coach Dockery kept the message simple.  

"Play with intensity every possession and don't give up," said Dockery.  "All credit goes to them."    

Scoring by Quarters:  

BC     13    8    22    10         53

GC      8    13   16    12         49   

The Third Region Tournament will be held next week at the Owensboro Sportscenter.  The draw will be Saturday.  As a district champion, Butler County will face a district runner-up.  Possible opponents are Ohio County, Apollo or Breckinridge County.  Butler County will begin preparations for regional tournament play with an 8:30 a.m. practice on Saturday morning at the Sportscenter.  Stay connected to Beech Tree News and WLBQ 101.5  for the latest sports updates.

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Story by John Embry, Beech Tree News.