Hamilton’s late layup upends Davenport

Tahlen Hamilton hit a driving layup with three seconds to play to give Asher a 49-47 victory over Davenport Monday in first-round action of the Tri-County Tournament at North Rock Creek.

Davenport got off a 25-foot shot at the buzzer but the ball bounced off the back of the rim.

Neither team could build up a comfortable cushion during the game. Davenport led 33-29 at the half.

Mike McDonald headed Asher’s scoring with 19 and fellow senior Hamilton finished with 13. McDonald had Asher’s only 3-point field goal.

Asher (10-8) prevailed largely by hitting 12-of-16 free throws while Davenport was just 2 of 5.

“This was a real good win,” said Asher coach Lee Reimer “We’ve been playing a lot of higher-ranked teams and it was a good game to come out on top.”

All five of Davenport’s 3-point field goals came from Cole Yancy, the game’s leading scorer with 29.

Teammate Casey Harelson added eight points.

Asher will play North Rock Creek, a Monday victor over Wellston, in Thursday’s 8:30 p.m. semifinals.

Asher 49, Davenport 35 (Girls)

Balanced double-figure scoring and a second-half resurgence helped Asher improve to 7-9.

Kat Dixon and Alexis Francis shared Asher scoring honors with 12. Alexis Johnston chipped in with 11 points.

Most of that three-player scoring load came in the second half. Down 16-13 at halftime, Asher went on an 18-5 binge in the third quarter, then closed it out with an 18-14 advantage over the final eight minutes.

Dixon knocked down two 3-point shots.

Ellie Tippy led Davenport’s scoring with 12 and Malorie Byford added 10.

Davenport didn’t have a 3-pointer.

“We came out with a lot more aggression on defense,” said Asher coach BJ Echard.

Neither team fared well from the free-throw line. Asher was 8 of 17 for 47%. Davenport connected on 11-of-20 attempts for 55%.

Asher will oppose North Rock Creek, a Monday winner over Wellston, in Thursday’s 6:40 semifinal encounter.