Catholic High claims season series over Ascension to advance in Division III playoffs – The Advocate

Catholic-New Iberia bolted to an early lead with a barrage of 3-pointers, then withstood a late rally to defeat Ascension Episcopal 59-50 in a Division III boys basketball regionals playoff game Tuesday.

Tristan Lewis made three 3s to open the game for the No. 6 Panthers, and Jaiden Mitchell hit two more to put the hosts up 15-0 at the 3:10 mark of the first quarter.

"I have pretty good range," said Lewis, a freshman who finished with five 3s and a game-high 20 points. "I was thinking that in order to win this game, we were going to have to start fast and shoot really well."

Although two of Ascension Episcopal's top scorers, Austin Mills and Luke Guidry, combined for only two points through the first three quarters, the No. 11 Blue Gators bounced back from the sluggish start.

The Blue Gators outscored the Panthers 13-7 in the second quarter to reduce the deficit to 26-18 at halftime. After going scoreless in the first quarter, Nelson Elmore scored eight of his 12 points in the second quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Mills and Guidry combined for 16 points and the Blue Gators closed within 47-44 on a layup by Cade Dardar with 2:30 remaining, but Mitchell made seven free throws down the stretch. Senior forward Russell Davis also scored seven of his nine points in the fourth quarter.

"I know he's young, but I know he's going to shoot 70% from the free throw line," McGrew said of Mitchell, one of three freshmen in the Panthers' starting lineup. "He's not going to make all of them. He's not perfect, but he's going to make the majority of them.

"Russell always finds the time to be in the right place. I don't know how he does it, but he's always in the right place to get a pass, and these guys find him. My younger guys, my ball handlers, find him and make that pass."

It was the third matchup of the year between the District 7-2A rivals. In January, Ascension Episcopal won 56-45 in Youngsville with the Panthers winning 44-41 in New Iberia in February.

"Ascension Episcopal is always a tough opponent," McGrew said. "We know each other very well. It was very important that we jump out to a big lead, and we did. We came out with a lot of energy, and we played really good defense early in the game."

Mitchell finished with 13 points for the 18-9 Panthers, who will face No. 3 Lafayette Christian (23-8) in the quarterfinals Thursday.

Elmore and Mills each scored 12 points and Dardar added 10 points for the Blue Gators, who finished the season with a 21-14 record.

"I thought our kids played with a lot of heart and a lot of toughness, which we've been preaching all year," Blue Gators coach Eric Mouton said. "There was a rowdy crowd tonight, but we never quit.

"When we play hard in our half-court trap, it's effective. Tonight, we got our hands on some balls and got steals to get us back in the game, but we gave up a couple of late lay-ups that cost us."

See more here:

Catholic High claims season series over Ascension to advance in Division III playoffs - The Advocate