Jackets win All “A” region, headed to state

The undefeated Williamsburg Yellow Jackets came into this year’s 13^th Region All “A” Classic as a favorite to win it all, and last Friday they were able to turn those hopes into reality by narrowly defeating Barbourville 56-54 in the tournament finals at Harlan Independent High School. The win put them at 16-0 on the year and gave them their first 13^th Region All “A” crown since 2010.

“I’m really proud of our guys for being able to come in here and grab this championship after the years of not being able to win it,” said Head Coach Patrick Robinson after the game. “It was an exciting game, an exciting finish, and I am just so glad for this team.”

The “exciting finish” that Robinson mentioned came when the game was tied 54-54 with only about a minute remaining in regulation. The Jackets called a timeout to talk things over, and when play resumed they were able to work the ball inside to junior Andrew Griffith, who hit a wide open layup with five seconds left on the clock to put Williamsburg up 56-54.

Barbourville had a chance at a last second three-point shot, but it bounced off the front of the rim, allowing the Yellow Jackets’ history-making run to continue this season.

When asked about the game-winning shot, Griffith, who received All-Tournament honors, said, “This is a pretty great feeling. Barbourville is much improved since we played them last. They have good shooters, and they’re good on the glass. It was tough, but Corey (Shelton) threw me a nice pass at the end to get the W.”

Senior Skyler Griffith, who came away with tournament MVP honors, said, “This is amazing. To come in and win this tournament is just amazing. Barbourville came out playing, but at halftime coach made a great adjustment. We came out, played the way we were supposed to, and we got the win. This streak that we have going on is fun. Just awesome.”

The championship game was a close contest throughout, with Williamsburg only holding on to a 28-26 lead after one half of play. The Tigers grabbed the lead in the third quarter, but were unable to keep it, trailing by two points again, 42-40, heading into the fourth quarter. Barbourville rebounded the ball very efficiently all night, in addition to playing solid defense and hitting several clutch shots. All of this combined to keep them within reach of victory, right up until the end when the Yellow Jackets were finally able to put them away.

Williamsburg now shifts their focus to the Touchstone Energy All “A” state tournament, which begins tomorrow (Thurs, Jan 29) in Frankfort.

The tournament is scheduled to get underway at 8:30 AM at the Frankfort Convention Center. A total of eight games will be played in the opening round, with the Jackets facing Danville in the day’s final contest, scheduled to tipoff at 9:30 PM.

The 14-9 Danville Admirals come to the All “A” state tourney out of a very competitive 12^th Region. They defeated Somerset 68-52 to win their All “A” region championship, and much like Williamsburg they look to be led by a veteran group of players including three seniors and five juniors. Senior forward Cody Woolridge seems to be the team’s go-to scorer, with fellow senior Trevin Washington and junior Spencer McKinney also showing that they can be dangerous when they get the ball in their hands as well.

The Yellow Jackets have endured some tough tests so far this season, but to win the All “A” state tournament will no doubt be their most difficult task to date. Assuming they get past Danville, they will have to square off Friday with the winner of Murray (Region 1) and Monroe County (Region 4). Monroe County looks to be the stronger of those two teams, currently sitting atop the Region 4 standings with an overall record of 19-2.

Looking even further ahead, if Williamsburg survives to the semifinal round on Saturday, chances are good that they will meet up with either the Owen County Rebels (19-2), who are the team to beat in Region 8, or the Augusta Panthers (16-6), who are in a close race with Mason County to take the top spot in Region 10.

The championship game is scheduled to take place Sunday, February 1 at 2:30 PM, and fans can look for Lexington Christian (15-6, Region 11), Newport Central Catholic (15-3, Region 9), or Elliott County (14-4, Region 16) to make an appearance here out of the top half of this year’s bracket. Buckhorn (13-6, Region 14) is also another likely candidate to make it to the finals.

The Touchstone Energy All “A” Classic Boys’ State Tournament is highlighted by a talented field of competitors in 2015, and should result in some of the best basketball action the state has seen so far this season. The road to a state title will be fraught with difficult challenges for Williamsburg over the course of four days, but this team has already proven that they are very capable of winning in big game situations.

Look to social media and www.thenewsjournal.net for updates on the Yellow Jackets’ progress throughout the tournament this week, and of course, be sure to pick up next week’s edition of The News Journal for full results.