The Male High School Bulldogs cruised to a 94-59 victory over the Breathitt County Bobcats in the first round of the KHSAA Boys Sweet 16 on Wednesday.
The game started off with a close first quarter, but the Bulldogs quickly pulled away in the second quarter and never looked back. Male led by 20 points at halftime and continued to build on that lead throughout the second half.
Male had four players who scored in double digits, led by Jack Edelen with 18 points. Cole Edelen contributed 17 points, while Demetris White and Max Gainey each had 15 points. Male also had a strong showing from beyond the arc, hitting 15 of 33 attempts from three-point range.
Breathitt County, on the other hand, had a more spread-out scoring effort. Luke Bellamy led the team with 16 points, while Austin Sperry had 10 points and Bryce Hoskins and Chris Collins each had 9 points. The team struggled from three-point range, hitting just 4 of 12 attempts.
The Bulldogs dominated the game in almost every statistical category. They shot 56% from the field compared to Breathitt County’s 50%, made 15 three-pointers compared to Breathitt County’s 4, and had only 6 turnovers compared to Breathitt County’s 20.
Male also had a strong defensive performance, recording 13 steals and blocking 2 shots. They held Breathitt County to just 59 points, which was well below their season average of 69.3 points per game.
Rebounding proved to be an important factor. Although Male outrebounded Breathitt County 26 to 27, they were able to turn their offensive rebounds into 10 second-chance points, while Breathitt County only managed to convert their offensive rebounds into 7 second-chance points.
Turnovers were another crucial factor in the game. Male only had 6 turnovers, while Breathitt County had 20. Male was able to capitalize on these turnovers, scoring 26 points off of them, compared to Breathitt County’s 7.
The bench comparison was also significant. Male’s bench scored 22 points, while Breathitt County’s bench scored only 11. This gave Male an advantage in terms of depth and allowed them to maintain a high level of energy throughout the game.
Breathitt County did manage to keep the rebounding battle close and limited their turnovers in the second half.
Male now faces the winner of Lyon County/Newport. PREVIEW