Alice Lloyd Eagles use big second half to defeat Campbellsville Harrodsburg, 81-74

Harrodsburg, KY:  On Saturday, December 16th, the Alice Lloyd Eagles journeyed to central Kentucky to participate in the second matchup of the Campbellsville- Harrodsburg University Classic. This contest would be against the skilled host club, UC Harrodsburg. The Caney Creek boys would ride a big second half and overcome a six-point halftime deficit to take the win, 81-74.

In the opening stanza, the hometown Pioneers came out quickly behind the hot-shooting of Lewis Richards to vault out to a 11-7 lead. From there, the Pioneers would maintain their advantage. Fueled by the bench play of big man Evan Fredrick and guard Elijah Frye, their club would pull out to a 23-15 lead at 9:02

Fortunately, ALC would get a combined twenty-seven first-half points from the seniors Jared Strickland and Ben Soumahoro and sophomore Koji Anderson to hang close. Despite that performance, UCH would manage to hold tight and take a 42-36 advantage into the locker room at intermission.

In the second half, the Eagles would come out needing a lift. Fortunately, they would get just what the doctor ordered off the bench from junior Devaunte Robinson. The forward stuck several big shots to lead a resurgence. ALC would go on a nice run and pull ahead 55-46 with 13:00 left to play.

From there, Harrodsburg would heat up and respond with a burst of their own. Over the next four minutes, they would reel off a 16-2 blitz, and pull ahead 62-57. The Eagles appeared ready to fall.

However, as they have done several times this season, the Pippa Passes posse dug deep and found an answer. First, Anderson would stick a big jumper. Next, a huge Robinson trifecta knotted the score once more at 62. Finally, Strickland would sink a huge trifecta of his own to give his buddies a lead they would not relinquish again. From there, Alice Lloyd would sink enough free throws to keep the Pioneers at bay, as they earned the nice road victory.

For the winning Alice Lloyd crew (8-4), they would place four men in double figures in a well-balanced attack. They were led on the night by Strickland, who finished with a game-high 22 points. The guard also added 4 boards and 2 steals.

He was followed closely by Anderson, who came up huge in the second half. The guard drained several timely hoops and was deadly from the free throw line to finish with 20 points. He also registered 3 assists and 3 steals.

Soumahoro, was right behind his mates as the forward added 18 points. He completed a double-double by snatching 12 rebounds. Robinson finished with 13 points and nabbed 7 boards of his own. In addition, sophomore guard Jack Brown chipped in with 8 points, including two on a massive slam, and led the team with 4 assists and 3 blocks.

On the night, the victors shot just 40.3% (27-67) from the field, 42,9% (6-14) from beyond the arc and 65.4% (21-33) from the charity stripe. They grabbed 43 rebounds, handed off 11 assists, stole 9 balls and blocked 5 shots.

Campbellsville-Harrodsburg (11-3) was paced by Richards and Frye with 17 points apiece while Frederick added 16 points and 11 rebounds. Their squad shot 41.9% (26-62) from the field, but just 34% the second half. In addition, they finished at 30% (6-20) from beyond the arc and 69.6% (16-23) from the charity stripe. They snared 43 rebounds, handed off 14 assists, stole 3 balls.

The Eagles return to the hardwood Thursday, December 21^st, when they travel to Morehead to face NCAA DI Morehead State University Eagles of the Ohio Valley Conference in an exhibition match.

Alice Lloyd will then conclude the 2023 portion of the season on December 30^th when they journey to Indianapolis, Indiana to face the NAIA's top ranked team, 11-0 Grace College, Indiana. The contest will be played at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, home of the NBA's Indiana Pacers. The tipoff will actually follow the Pacers vs New York Knicks matchup, so gametime is not scheduled until 10:00 pm.