So far, so good
Thackerson lights up Halls to power CHS to district title
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Clinton Dragons Basketball celebrates winning the 3A District 4 championship with the student section and cheerleaders after defeating the Halls Red Devils 67-46. - Tony Cox
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Clinton’s Jackson Garner eyes the rim as he makes a move to penetrate the Seymour defense Saturday night in region play. - Tony Cox
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Dragons’ senior, Lane Harrison, puts an exclamation mark on the end of a play late in the fourth period of District Championship match up against the Halls Red Devils. Harrison finished the night with six points and seven rebounds. - Tony Cox
The Clinton Dragons rode an impressive second half to a 67-46 win over Halls in the District 4-3A Tournament championship game last Tuesday.
Trace Thackerson opened scoring with a 3-pointer to give Clinton a lead they would never relinquish. Halls managed to keep the game close, but the Dragons closed out the first quarter on an 8-0 run, including a 3-pointer by Jackson Garner at the buzzer, to give Clinton a 17-7 lead.
In the second quarter, only Garner and Rishon Bright scored for the Dragons as the Red Devils ended the quarter on a 10-0 run to trim the Clinton lead to 23-21 at the half.
Any hope Halls had of tying or taking a lead evaporated quickly in the third quarter as Thackerson scored and then added two quick 3-pointers to help spark a 15-1 Clinton run.
Thackerson added three treys in the quarter as Lane Harrison and Bright made baskets. Garner hit another 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Dragons a 49-29 lead at the end of the third quarter.
“When Trace got hot, I think we had about four minutes there offensively where we got flowing and we were moving the ball so well,” said Chris Lockard, head coach of the Dragons.
“We were hitting open shots and finding open guys and Thackerson again had an explosion. Guys found him in good space. Defensively is what created that tempo for us and we did an outstanding job on the boards,” said Lockard.
The Red Devils had their most productive quarter in the final eight minutes but Clinton outscored them by a single point. Jeremiah Blauvelt scored nine points in the quarter and the Dragons took the lopsided win.
Thackerson led all scorers with 22 points while Garner added 20. Thackerson was named the MVP of the tournament.
Halls 7 14 8 17 46
CHS 17 6 26 18 67
Halls - Luke Simpson (11), Jake Lane (8), Dayde Young (8), Ben Thomas (4), Kaiden Stanton (4), Caleb Shaffer (3), Bennett Lane (3), Simon Williams (3), Cassen Rogers (2)
CHS - Trace Thackerson (22), Jackson Garner (20), Jeremiah Blauvelt (9), Rishon Bright (8), Lane Harrison (6), Dodi Truss (2)
The Dragons beat Seymour 86-36 in the opening round of the regional tournament on Saturday night.
“We got hot from the perimeter and started scoring real well. And then we had control,” Lockard said.
Garner opened scoring to give Clinton the lead before Seymour took the lead with a 3-pointer very early. The lead did not last long as the Dragons forced multiple turnovers and converted as they closed the quarter on a 12-2 run as Garner, Blauvelt, and Hunter Rupert each knocked down a 3-pointer to give Clinton a 20-8 lead.
The second quarter began just as the first quarter ended - with the Dragons rolling up points. Harrison opened the quarter with a 3-pointer and sparked an 11-0 run. Harrison and Bright each had dunks that fired up the crowd as Clinton pulled away. Harrison added another 3-pointer and Rupert added two treys as part of an 11-2 run.
Clinton led 46-18 at the half.
The Dragons defense forced multiple turnovers in the third quarter and the offense scored virtually at will. By the end of the quarter the lead had swelled to 70-30.
In the fourth quarter, Lockard substituted freely and nearly every player scored.
“We talked at halftime. We can either revert to bad habits or we can continue to improve … And we did that (improve),” Lockard said.
Harrison led all scorers with 17 points while Rupert added 15 and Blauvelt 13.
Clinton was scheduled to play Scott at home on Tuesday night. With a win, they will advance to the regional championship game and a spot in the sectional tournament.
SHS 8 10 12 6 36
CHS 20 26 24 16 86
Seymour - Cameron Soulages (11), Stan Pennington (7), Ayden Huskey (5), Bradon Chandler (4), Caleb Ogle (3), Bryce Chapman (2), Connor Hilton (2), Brendon Harris (2)
CHS - Lane Harrison (17), Hunter Rupert (15), Jeremiah Blauvelt (13), Rishon Bright (8), Barrett Maddox (6), Trace Thackerson (5), Kaden Ison (5), Tyler Morgan (2), Dodi Truss (2), Derek Bean (2)