Demons whip Dayton to get back into win

Demons connect on 12 from 3-point range in dominating win over Dayton

Freshman Brennan Stanley goes up for a shot versus Simon Kenton earlier this week. Stanley scored 26 versus Simon Kenton and 21 in a win over Dayton.

By Wade Holland

Publisher

Connecting on 12 shots from 3-point range and putting up the third most points they have scored this season, the Williamstown Demons got back into the win column on Friday with a 77-62 victory over Dayton.

Williamstown, which scored 27 points in the second period alone, had four players reach double digits in the dominating win, their fourth of the season.

Freshman point guard Brennan Stanley was unstoppable at times, hitting four 3-pointers while scoring a game-high 21 points. He put on a show in the second period with 12 points, which included a trio of 3-pointers.

Sophomore shooting guard Jon Jump was equally impressive and contributed 15 points in the win, including eight in the first period and seven in the third. One of the state's leading 3-point shooters, he hit a pair from long range in the game.

Freshman guard Harold Fernandez had possibly his best game of the season with 14 points, including 10 over the final eight minutes.

Junior Carter Sarcione drained a pair of 3-pointers and ended the game with 10 points.

Sophomore Dustin Smith and freshman Brady Montgomery both contributed six points apiece to the Demons' total, hitting a pair of 3-pointers each.

Stanley's 21, Jump's 15 lead way for WHS in 77-62 home win

Sophomore Landen Hare scored three points for the winners, hitting a shot from long range, while Chris Parsons rounded out the Demons' scoring with two points.

Williamstown, which led 16-14 after one period, dominated both offensively and defensively in the second period and outscored the visitors 27-8 to hold a 42-22 advantage at the half.

The win upped Williamstown's record to 4-12 overall with five weeks left in the regular season.

While he's certainly not satisfied with the won-loss record, Williamstown Coach Roger Harden is most definitely not disappointed in his team, which continues to improve every single day. In fact, Harden continues to be impressed with the Demons for the way they handle themselves through both the good and bad.

"When 90 percent of your minutes are coming from freshman and sophomores, you're going to struggle sometimes," he said. "But these guys are a very talented bunch. What I'm most proud of is their moral. It never drops. They love the game. They keep working hard. And they keep believing. What these guys are doing right now is they are building a lot of resilience for the future. They see the end game.

"We knew going into the season that we had

Jon Jump takes the ball to the hole versus Simon Kenton earlier this week. Jump scored 20 against the Pioneers and 15 in his team's win over Dayton on Friday.

some deficits that were going to be hard to overcome, like size and experience," continued Harden. "But these guys hang together. They give 100 percent every day at practice. Their day is going to come."

Even in defeat, Williamstown always shows class and represents the school and community well, another aspect that makes Harden proud to be a Demon.

"We can only control what we can control, and these guys do a good job of that," he said. "We can control our effort and our attitude and the guys always do well at that. They always play hard. These guys are a real joy to coach."

Simon Kenton 85, Williamstown 63

Simon Kenton, one of Region 8's most talented and experienced teams with four seniors and five juniors, had too much height and experience for the Demons, who put up a good fight and never gave up.

Simon Kenton currently has 12 wins, including victories over Louisville powers Male and St. Xavier, as well as a recent win over Grant Co. The Pioneers have won six of their last seven games.

Brennan Stanley led the Williamstown offense with 26 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. But most impressive was his 12-for-12 performance from the free-throw line.

Jon Jump was next with 20 points, including four 3-pointers, which is one more than his average of 2.9 per game, which ranks among the best in Kentucky.

Freshman Brady Montgomery continued to emerge as a scorer for the Demons with 11 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, which caught the coach's eye. He also hit both of his free-throw attempts in the game.

"We've been looking for another scorer and I think Brady Montgomery is really stepping up his game right now," said Harden. "People will start to see a lot more of him. It's very exciting to see him get better as his confidence gets better."

Cameron Varner was next for Williamstown with four points, followed by Chris Parsons with two to round out the Demons' scoring.