Live update: Scott County 52, Tates Creek 42

• Scott County, rated No. 1 in the pre-season, will take the No. 1 rating into the Sweet Sixteen after pulling away in the closing minutes to beat Tates Creek 52-42 in the region finals in front of 3,400 fans in McBrayer Arena. Bud Mackey’s 20 points and 10 rebounds led the winners. Matt Walls had 12 points, seven rebounds and seven assists as the Cards ran their record to 30-2, including a 26-0 mark against Kentucky teams. Michael Sparks had 12 ponts for Tates Creek, which shot only 32 percent.
• Tates Creek misfires on a three, Scott County rebounds and has spread the floor with less than 2 minutes left.
• Scott County leads 45-37 with 2:17 left as Tates Creek calls timeout. Bud Mackey has 20 points for the Cards. Michael Sparks has 12 for the Commodores, who need to pull some magic if they want to pull the upset.
• Matt Walls is cooking. Scott County’s senior guard has knocked down a pair of pull-up jumpers to give his team a 43-37 lead with 4:15 left. Walls had two points in the first half but has put up 10 so far in the second.
• No. 1 Scott County leads Tates Creek 39-33 going into the fourth quarter. In last year’s finals the Cards led Madison Central by 12 after three periods. Both teams’ strategy tonight is, for the most part, attack, attack, attack the rim. Bud Mackey has 19 points to lead all scorers.
• With 1:09 left in the third quarter, Scott County has opened up a 37-31 lead. Bud Mackey and Matt Walls scored the Cards’ first 16 points of the second half.
• Bud Mackey and Matt Walls opened the second half attacking the basket and have combined for eight quick points to give Scott County its biggest lead of the night at 28-23.
• Halftime score: Scott County 20, Tates Creek 18. After the Commodores missed a shot with 8 seconds left in the half, Scott County’s Tyler Portwood scored on a fast break to give his team the lead going into the locker room. Neither team is shooting well. Tates Creek is 8-for-26 (31%) and Scott County is 9-for-28 (32%). The Commodores’ quick hands on defense are giving Scott County some trouble. Bud Mackey is the game’s top scorer with 9 points. Tates Creek’s got to feel good about being right in the hunt with 16 minutes left.
• It’s a low-scoring final so far … Scott County is on top 14-12 with 3:10 left in the first half.
• Tates Creek is shooting 4-for-18 but trails by only 12-10 early in the second quarter.
• Scott County’s Bud Mackey has 9 points in the first quarter but the Cardinals are tied with Tates Creek 10-10. The underdog Commodores led most of the opening period, jumping out to a 6-2 lead.
• We’re 10 minutes from tip-off. Scott County fans outnumber Tates Creek fans. Red-clad Cardinal backers have filled one side of EKU’s McBrayer Arena, and a students have filled the lower end zone seats.

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