Warren Central Dragons Head Coach William Unseld yells to his players during a boys’ high school basketball game Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, at Greenwood High School in Bowling Green, Ky.(Photo by Joe Imel/Daily News)

Warren Central’s boys’ basketball team rung in the new year Friday night much the same as it closed out the old one last week – by dominating another opponent for a lopsided victory.

Friday’s victim was Greenwood, as Warren Central manhandled the shorthanded Gators for a 73-27 road victory in the Dragons’ District 14 opener.

“District is hard because they game-plan for you,” Warren Central senior forward Chappelle Whitney said. “They watch film, they know what you’re going to do. They probably know what you’re going to do in the last minute, the first minute of the game, after halftime what play you’re going to run.

“They know what you’re going to do. If you want to go left, they’ll force you to go right – just little things like that. So it’s good to get a real good district win and send a message.”

Plenty of Dragons lined up to deliver said message. Whitney led the way with 20 points and seven rebounds, and was joined in double-digit scoring by Kade Unseld (11 points) and Damarion Walkup (10), with Izayiah Villafuerte and Tayvion Wells not far off with eight points apiece.

Ranked No. 1 in the state in the last Associated Press poll released two weeks ago, Warren Central (14-1 overall, 1-0 District 14) bounced back from its first loss of the season to Madison Central on Dec. 27, which came a week after the Dragons won the prestigious King of the Bluegrass in Louisville for the first time in school history.

“There are no holes or weaknesses in that team,” Greenwood coach Will McCoy said of Warren Central. “They handle the ball well, they play for each other, they guard relentlessly, they rebound as a group. They are a very, very well-coached basketball team.”

Greenwood (4-12, 0-2) played minus two starters, with guards Zach Davis out due to illness and Luke Stansbury sidelined with an ankle injury.

The Dragons came out hot, racing to a 13-3 lead in the first four minutes as Whitney cleaned up in the paint for three quick buckets in that stretch. Chaze Huff hit a 3-pointer to slow the momentum briefly, but the Dragons’ Omari Glover answered with a basket on a baseline drive, then Wells buried a 3 to force a Gators’ time out.

It didn’t help, as Unseld scored six straight points to spark a 10-0 run capped by back-to-back buckets by Whitney (10 first-quarter points). Another 3-pointer by Huff in the closing seconds prevented it from being even worse for the Gators, who trailed 28-9 at the end of the period.

“We played fast, we sped them up, we really guarded in the half court,” Warren Central coach William Unseld said. “They hit some 3s – I think the majority of their points were from the 3-point line, so we did a good job of protecting the paint and protecting the rim.

“They’re a young team – they’ve got some talent. But I like how we came out and played, and that’s what really good teams do.”

The Dragons kept pouring it on in the second quarter, outscoring Greenwood 18-6 to take a 46-15 halftime lead. Walkup posted eight points in the frame.

Warren Central forced the Gators into 17 first-half turnovers and 26 overall in the game.

“Pressure, pressure, pressure,” Warren Central senior Malik Jefferson said of the game plan against Greenwood. “Keep the ball of the floor and push it up the floor.”

Walkup delivered a highlight-reel sequence in the third quarter when he swiped the ball from a Greenwood player, then took it the other way to hammer down a one-handed dunk.

Huff led the Gators with 10 points. Greenwood dropped a 69-58 decision to Madisonville-North Hopkins in the German American Bank Classic on Saturday at Bowling Green. The Gators host Butler County on Tuesday

Warren Central picked up a 89-61 road win at Louisville Central on Saturday. Damarion Walkup (19 points, 10 rebounds), Omari Glover (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Chappelle Whitney (18 points, 10 rebounds) all posted double-doubles, while Tayvion Wells had 14 points and six rebounds, and Kade Unseld finished with nine points and eight rebounds.

The Dragons are at Hopkinsville on Tuesday.

WCHS 28 18 18 9 – 73

GHS 9 6 6 6 – 27

WCHS – Whitney 20, Unseld 11, Walkup 10, Villafuerte 8, Wells 8, Glover 6, Jefferson 5, Hammer 3, Kirk 2.

GHS – Huff 10, Howard 5, Stivers 4, Hartis 2, Pettus 2, Simpson 2, Team 2.

Girls

Greenwood 54, Warren Central 39

Greenwood had to turn up the pressure to shake loose from Warren Central in a District 14 matchup Friday.

Despite building a 24-18 halftime lead, the Lady Gators scuffled in the first half against the Lady Dragons’ determined rebounding. Although Warren Central (3-15, 0-2) struggled to make shots in the early going, their presence under the rim gave them enough chances to keep it close. Led by Briana Frausto’s 10 first-half rebounds, the Lady Dragons kept in striking distance.

Then in the second quarter, Warren Central closed the gap to nothing as Hannah Bailey’s two made free throws got the Lady Dragons even at 16-all with 1:42 left in the half.

It didn’t stay that way, as Ella Whittle hit a 3-pointer on the other end to spark an 8-2 run to close out the half.

Greenwood (11-6, 1-1) then put the game out of reach in the third quarter by forcing eight turnovers in the frame to help push a six-point lead to as many as 17 late in the quarter.

“They did a lot of good things tonight to kind of take us out of our comfort zone,” Greenwood coach Zach Simpson said. “I thought we responded well in the third quarter by kind of turning up our defensive pressure a little bit, which led to some fast-break stuff in order for us to get some points.”

Leia Trinh led the Lady Gators with a game-high 23 points. Whittle added 11 and Kayla Grant had nine points and 11 rebounds.

Frausto finished with 18 rebounds for the Lady Dragons, who outrebounded Greenwood 46-28. Aida Akhmedova led Warren Central with 16 points, and Kennedee Robinson added 10 points and eight boards.

The Lady Dragons next travel to Bowling Green on Friday.

Greenwood beat John Hardin 67-64 in the Central Hardin-hosted RDT Construction New Year’s Classic on Saturday. The Lady Gators are South Warren on Tuesday.

WCHS 6 12 7 14 – 39

GHS 12 12 18 12 – 54

WCHS – Akhmedova 16, Robinson 10, J. Bailey 7, H. Bailey 4, Frausto 2.

GHS – Trinh 23, Whittle 11, Grant 9, McCorkle 6, Peterson 3, Martin 2.{&end}