New Kent tops Goochland in consolation game of holiday tournament

New Kent’s Ethan Smith (22) is hacked by Goochland’s Luke Farkas (left) as he elevates on a shot attempt.

Robb Johnson photo

After a setback in the opening round of the Goochland Holiday Invitational, New Kent’s Trojans looked to come out of the tournament with at least one win. It did so against the hosting Goochland Bulldogs.

New Kent coasted to a 92-67 victory over the hosts, splitting their tournament appearance during the Dec. 20 contest.

Goochland and New Kent battled back and forth in the first quarter. But thanks to three trifectas from Trojan guard Will Ross, New Kent led by one (19-18) to hold an edge in the frame.

In the second quarter, New Kent’s defense intensified in the next frame. Scores from Ross, Isiah Carr, Jordan Howard, and Ethan Smith propelled the Trojans out to a 29-20 lead. Goochland struggled to find points for most of the second stanza, as New Kent took a 50-31 lead into the halftime break.
New Kent’s offense continued to click, outscoring the hosts 28-18 in the third quarter to hold a 78-49 lead at the break. From there, the Trojans’ reserves pumped in additional baskets to preserve the victory.

After the contest, New Kent Head Coach Garrett Ross spoke about the bounce back effort.

“I am proud of them, and this is our fifth game in eight days,” he commented. “We wanted to make sure we enjoyed the holidays and get a win in the last game of the year.

“We talked about spacing and alignment,” Ross added. “We played with tempo and had active hands in the lane. I am so proud of this group.”

Carr’s 21 points led the Trojans (6-4) in scoring. Ross tossed in 19, Kyle Diggs and Smith both pumped in 10 apiece, Dillon Mickles added eight, Josiah Reedy contributed six, Howard tossed in five, Andrew Johnson scored four, David McCoy added three, and the trio of Kemauri Palmer, Khoen Christian, and Brett Lookhart chipped in with two apiece.