Trinity basketball, behind Jayden Johnson, tops Ballard in Seventh Region quarterfinal
Ballard junior Sam Frazier and Trinity sophomore Jayden Johnson have bright futures for their respective teams, but they played well in the present Tuesday night during a Seventh Region boys basketball quarterfinal.
Johnson scored 21 points — including the clinching free throws — to lead No. 6 Trinity to a 59-56 victory. The Shamrocks will play No. 11 Manual at 5:30 p.m. Friday in a semifinal at Valley.
“Jayden’s a great player, and we continue to work with him on all the little things,” Shamrocks coach Bret Saxton said. “He’s one of the most skilled sophomores we’ve ever had here at Trinity. So, for us, it’s all about the little things, the nuances, intangibles. We really feel like his ceiling is as high as anybody we’ve had here.”
Frazier showed why he’s among the state’s sharpest shooters after pouring in 19 points (including four 3-pointers), all in the first half. The guard did it against a variety of defenders, including Johnson — a long, athletic defender at 6 feet, 5 inches.
In the second half, Saxton said the Shamrocks “(paid) more attention to detail” and made Frazier work for his touches — whether he was defended by Johnson or sophomore Keriawn Berry.
Most of all, Saxton wanted “four guys to be help” whenever Frazier had the ball during the final 16 minutes, when he was held scoreless.
Johnson scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, when he also had a behind-the-back assist to senior Drae Vasser (11 points) and a wraparound pass to junior Julius Edmonds to give Trinity a 46-42 lead.
The game nearly turned disastrous for Johnson and Trinity (24-7) when he had back-to-back turnovers with the Shamrocks clinging to a 57-53 lead.
Despite the mistakes, Johnson said he “trains for” moments like hitting clutch free throws.
“Always just clear my head,” Johnson said. “Go up to the free-throw line, take two or three deep breaths and just close my eyes. Imagine it’s just me out there; everybody else is just a factor. I’m the main one.”
Ballard coach Greg Willis lauded his team's resolve after the Bruins started 4-9, including an eight-game losing streak.
“I’m excited about the group we got returning,” Willis said. “I know we’re gonna get back to the winning ways of Ballard and that winning culture. That groundwork was laid over the last couple months.”
TRINITY 18 12 10 19 - 59
BALLARD 16 14 10 16 - 56
Trinity (24-7) – Jayden Johnson 21, Drae Vasser 11, Alex Johnson 9, Julius Edmonds 9, Keriawn Berry 4, Avery Frasher 3, Josiah Lawson 2
Ballard (14-16) – Sam Frazier 19, Nate Richardson 13, Cash Whitehead 13, Javeon Fairman 4, Nick Hayden 4, Cayon Gaines 3
More: Manual basketball uses stingy defense to eliminate defending Seventh Region champion Male
Reach sports reporter Brooks Warren at bwarren@gannett.com and follow him on X at @Broookksss.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: KHSAA basketball: Trinity tops Ballard in Seventh Region quarterfinal
