COLONY — Crest High was stuck on three points when Uniontown High had just scored on a second-chance basket to score its eighth point of the first quarter.
By the time the Eagles scored their next eight points, Crest had scored 34.
A frenetic, stifling defense sparked a 31-6 run that propelled the Lancers to a 55-43 win.
The victory lifts Crest’s record to 10-3 on the season.
“We were tight at the start,” Lancer head coach Travis Hermreck said. “We weren’t finishing our shots.”
Hermreck called timeout after Uniontown took the 8-3. A few “loud words” seemed to do the trick.
“We loosened up and really got after it,” Hermreck said. “That may have been about as good a half as we played.”
Sophomore Kyle Hammond scored on consecutive trips to up Crest’s lead to 34-14 late in the half.
The lead grew to as much as 27 before Uniontown caught fire down the stretch.
“We put it on cruise control, and they got hot, and that’s how a 27-point lead gets cut to 12.”
Uniontown outscored Crest 19-5 in the period but could get no closer than the final 12-point margin.
Hammond wound up with a game-high 25 points to lead the Lancers. Jordan Morton added nine and Dexter Wiley had seven.
Zack Travis paced Uniontown with 13 points, Brenton Esslinger scored 12 and Dakota Wiley had 11.
Friday’s contest was the first home game for Crest since Dec. 2, a span of eight weeks.
“It feels good to be back,” Hermreck said. “It had been a while since we had to wash these uniforms.”
Uniontown travels to Chetopa on Tuesday. Crest hosts Hartford.
Uniontown (10-6-8-19—43) (FG/3-pt): Travis 2/3-0-2-13, Dak. Wiley 1/3-0-2-11, Ulrey 0-0-1-0, Kuns 0-0-4-0, Robinson 1-0-2-2, Esslinger 3-6-2-12, Sympson 2-1-3-5. TOTALS: 9/6-7-16-43.
Crest (12-22-16-5—55) (FG/3-pt): Dex. Wiley 2/1-0-2-7, Morton 0/2-3-0-9, Hammond 8/2-3-0-25, Brallier 1-1-3-3, Decker 3-0-3-6, J. Bowen 1-0-1-2, Ellis 0-0-1-0, Ramsey 1-1-4-3. TOTALS: 16/5-8-14-55.
Defense fuels Lancer win over the Eagles
