George Rogers Clark’s boys and girls basketball teams traveled to Paris Tuesday night looking to lock up the No. 1 seeds in the district tournaments with wins against Bourbon County.

The Lady Cardinals took the floor first and dominated from the jump.

GRC scored the first eight points of the ball game and then went on another 7-0 run shortly after.

After a 20-9 lead at the end of the first quarter, the Lady Cards went on an eight-point run to begin the second quarter.

A Lady Colonels’ 3-pointer was the only basket from Bourbon County before GRC extended their lead to 42-13 late in the first half.

“We came out with a lot more intensity than we did in the first matchup,” GRC head coach Robbie Graham said. “Today we were prepared and came out and played with our hair on fire which is what we want to do night in and night out.

A 23-point halftime lead wasn’t enough for the Lady Cardinals as Graham said he wants his team to have a more foot-on-the-throat mentality.

“I think we did a good job with that [mentality] today,” Graham said. “During the second quarter they went with their second unit and we kind of relaxed a little bit, but we picked it up again. I told them whoever’s out there, if they’re in a jersey they’re trying to compete, so we have to keep up our intensity and keep playing hard.

They did just that, scoring the first 13 points of the second half to push their lead to 57-21, forcing a running clock for the remainder of the game.

The Lady Cardinals would go on to pick up a 71-40 win, clinching the No. 1 seed in the district tournament, one of Graham’s goals for the season.

“We don’t take that lightly,” Graham said. “We don’t set any goal for how many wins. We just want to get the No. 1 seed, win the district and win the region.”

Clark County’s boys team took the floor looking to do the same thing, but Bourbon County’s boys had different plans on their senior night.

GRC dominated in the first quarter with tensions high on the floor. After leading 16-11 in the final minutes of the period, the Cardinals scored seven points in a row to close the quarter.

With a 23-11 lead entering the second period, things were looking good for the Cardinals. They were able to push their lead to as many as 14 points midway through the quarter.

But Bourbon County went on a 14-point run to tie the game.

The Cards then scored five points quickly to get back on top, but the Colonels ended the half on a 7-0 run to take their first lead.

Bourbon County’s momentum carried into the third quarter. They scored the first four points out of the break and went on a nine-point run shortly after to give them a 53-41 lead midway through the in the third quarter.

“They became the more aggressive team. We just quit attacking and we got in our heads a little bit,” Josh Cook said. “One mistake turned to two. The kids were a little too hard on themselves, but that’s something we can work on and improve on.”

GRC closed the gap late in the period, cutting its deficit to single digits, but another swing in momentum pushed the Bourbon County lead to 60-46 heading into the final quarter.

The Cardinals looked like the Cardinals of the first quarter in the beginning of the fourth quarter, scoring the first nine points and not allowing a field goal for over four minutes in the quarter.

GRC struggled to hit free throws late, going 4-8 in the fourth quarter and 7-15 in the second half, making the comeback too tall of a task and Bourbon County went on to win 75-63.

“We didn’t really shoot the ball very well tonight. We had some stretches with mental mistakes and turnovers that we let get to us,” Cook said. “If we take care of the ball and do it right, I like where we would be. I think we’ll be able to work on that.”

The Cardinals are not out of the race for the No. 1 seed in the district tournament. In fact, they have at worst a coin flip’s chance of getting it. If Bourbon County falls to Paris in their final district game, the Cards will have the top seed. If they win, the top seed will be determined by a coin flip.

The team’s are likely to meet again in the postseason, whether it be in the district tournament, region tournament or both. Cook likes his team if they are to meet again.

“We’re there. We still fought back and were right there twice,” Cook said. “There’s a lot we can work on, small things, small plays. I thought Trent Edwards came in and played a heck of a basketball game. There’s a lot we can breakdown in film and do a better job at and we will.”

Both teams will be back in action Thursday night as they travel to Mason County for a doubleheader. The girls game is scheduled to tip at 6 p.m. and the boys game will follow.

GIRLS SCORING:

Kennedy Igo – 17, Tyra Flowers – 13, Shelbi Wilson – 11, Trinity Gay – 10, Ciara Byars – 7, Brianna Byars – 6, Erica Berry – 5, Amber Miller – 2

BOYS SCORING:

Jerone Morton – 17, Lincoln Bush – 16, Jeremiah Mundy-Lloyd – 9, KJ Rucker – 7, Trent Edwards – 6, Jared Wellman – 4, Reed Johnson – 3, Stanley Smothers – 1