Boys' LIT Roundup | Cortez Macklin takes 'driver's seat' in PRP romp

The Pleasure Ridge Park High School boys’ basketball team is putting up points in bunches this season, and Cortez Macklin finally is getting in on the action.

The 6-foot-2 senior scored a team-high 23 points and added nine rebounds and four steals as the Panthers ripped Fern Creek 96-59 on Wednesday in the second round of the Republic Bank/Coca-Cola Louisville Invitational Tournament at Bellarmine University’s Knights Hall.

PRP coach Dale Mabrey said Macklin had a slow start this season but began to emerge as a bigger offensive threat during a Christmas tournament in Illinois.

“Maybe he got tired of taking the back seat,” Mabrey said. “He’s in the driver’s seat right now.”

PRP (15-3), No. 4 in The Courier-Journal’s Litkenhous Ratings, will face No. 8 Jeffersontown (12-5) in Friday’s 3:30 p.m. quarterfinal.

Twelve Panthers scored against Fern Creek, with Max Clemons (16 points, eight rebounds), Jeril Taylor 12 points) and Lamontray Harris (10 points, four blocks) joining Macklin in double figures.

PRP entered the game averaging 80.5 points, topping out in a 121-93 victory over Fern Creek on Dec. 3.

“It’s real fun,” Macklin said of the fast-paced offense. “Coach wants us to get up and down the court, play defense, rebound and all that. We’re pretty happy with it.”

O’Brien Hobbs scored 26 points to lead the Tigers (11-8), who shot just 26.7 percent (16 of 60).

“I’m glad it happened to them,” said coach Dion Layfield, adding that his team was overconfident going into the game. “We couldn’t have gotten more embarrassed than we got tonight. … We didn’t execute our game plan and got out of the way we wanted to play.”

Macklin hit two 3-pointers and scored eight points as PRP rolled to a 29-8 first-quarter lead. By halftime it was 50-24.

Mabrey called Macklin’s play “jaw-dropping.”

“He was up over the rim grabbing rebounds, coming out and making passes and scoring,” Mabrey said. “Tonight he just controlled the game. He was a man among boys.”

• Trinity 73, Beth Haven 34: The No. 1 Shamrocks (12-2) opened the second quarter with a 21-0 run and the third with a 15-0 surge in the first-ever meeting between the schools.

Darryl Hicks hit 3 of 4 threes and scored 18 points to lead Trinity. Charles Foster added nine points as 13 of the 14 Shamrocks who played scored at least two.

Trinity will face No. 19 Eastern (9-8) in Friday’s 5 p.m. quarterfinal.

Sean Brown scored 16 to lead Beth Haven (13-3), which posted its first-ever LIT victory on Monday when it beat Western 40-38.

• Bullitt East 71, Southern 46: Chargers coach Troy Barr said he challenged his players’ manhood during halftime, and they responded in the third quarter.

Southern pulled within 33-27 on Randell Pickett’s 3-pointer with 5:43 left in the third quarter, but Bullitt East answered with a 15-3 run for a 48-30 lead and cruised from there.

“It wasn’t an X’s and O’s problem,” Barr said of his team’s early struggles. “It was a heart and effort problem.”

Rusty Troutman scored 21 points for the No. 2 Chargers (14-2), who will face No. 3 Ballard (12-5) in Friday’s 8:30 p.m. quarterfinal. Derek Willis added 15 points, 14 rebounds, seven blocks, four assists and two steals.