It was an up and down ride for the Lincoln County boys basketball team in the Rock Holiday Classic at Windemere Prep Academy in Orlando, Florida, as the Patriots went 1-2.

Lincoln (9-5) got off to a shaky start in the holiday tournament by falling to St. John Paul II of Tallahassee, Florida, 72-56 on Thursday. The Patriots righted themselves in round two on Friday by trouncing Ringgold High School of Georgia 70-23 only to be edged 79-75 in overtime by Chapmanville Regional of West Virginia Saturday in the 5th Place Consolation Game.

Lincoln vs. St. John Paul II (FL)

Senior guard Blake Smith, who finished with 64 points over three games and was named to the all-tournament team, poured in a game-high 24 points in Lincoln’s opener with St. John Paul II Thursday but it wouldn’t be enough to lead the Patriots to victory as the Panthers rolled 72-56.

Elijah Frye, who knocked down 36 points in the tourney, joined Smith in double figures with 10 points. A trio of double-digit shooters helped the Panthers to the win, led by Tyreke McElwain with 23 points. Alex Ware finished with 18 points and Patrick Copenhaver rounded out the trio with 13 points.

Lincoln trailed just 15-12 at the end of the first quarter only to have St. John come out in the second quarter to double up the Patriots’ scoring and open up the close game. The Panthers outpointed Lincoln 20-10 in the period to extend their lead to 35-22 at the half.

The Patriots would outscore the Panthers 37-34 in the second half, not enough to overcome St. John’s early lead.

St. John shot 54.8 percent in the game, going 23-for-42, 6-for-14 from 3-point range. The Panthers converted on 20 of 26 trips to the foul line.

Lincoln shot just 38 percent overall, going 19-for-50, 2-for-16 from 3. At the line, the Patriots were 16-for-19.

St. John outrebounded Lincoln 29-24.

Lincoln vs. Ringgold (GA)

Lincoln would have little trouble notching a “W” in round two of the tourney, with the Patriots exploding out to a 26-9 lead and never looking back in a 70-23 ripping of the Ringgold (Georgia) Rams.

Ten Patriots got in the scorebook in the win, led by Jaxon Smith who almost outscored Ringgold all by himself with a game-high 22 points on 8-for-12 shooting. Three players reached double figures, with Blake Smith contributing 16 points and Bryston Alcorn scoring 10 points.

Lincoln, which shot 55.6 percent overall (25-for-45), followed its explosive start with a 25-6 second quarter scoring blitz to blow the game wide open, making it 51-15 at the half.

Lincoln was 9-for-19 from 3-point range and converted on 11 of 13 trips to the line.

Ringgold was held to an icy 26.3 percent shooting (5-for-19). The Rams were 1-for-9 from 3-points out and went 12-for-19 at the foul line.

Lincoln outrebounded Ringgold 23-16.

Lincoln vs. Chapmanville (WV)

The Patriots’ run in the Rock Holiday Classic came to a disappointing end as Chapmanville Regional of West Virginia outlasted the Patriots 79-75 in overtime in the 5th Place Consolation Game.

Lincoln fell behind 17-8 in the first quarter but came back to outscore Chapmanville 22-16 in the second period to trim the deficit to 33-30 at the break.

Chapmanville pushed its lead back out to 52-44 behind a 19-14 third-quarter scoring run before before Lincoln closed regulation on a 21-13 run to deadlock the game at 65-all and force the overtime.

Chapmanville would make the final run in the game, however, outscoring Lincoln 14-10 in the extra period for the win.
Blake Smith, Frye and Alcorn combined for 62 points for the Patriots with Smith leading the way with 24 points on 6-for-14 shooting, 4-for-7 from 3, Frye following close behind with 21 points on 8-for-17 shooting, 2-for-3 from 3, and Alcorn getting 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting, 3-for-3 from 3.

As a team, Lincoln shot 46.3 percent from the field (25-for-54 overall, 9-for-14 from 3) and went 16-for-20 at the line.

Chapmanville shot 44.9 percent from the field (22-for-49 overall, 8-for-21 from 3). The team was 27-for-30 at the line.

Chapmanville outrebounded Lincoln 30-21.

The Rock Holiday Classic
At Windemere Prep, Florida

1st Round

St. John 15 20 23 14 – 72
Lincoln 12 10 20 14 – 56

LINCOLN (8-4) – Bryston Alcorn 9, Bryson Yaden 4, Blake Smith 24, Elijah Frye 10, Darius Napier 4, Jaxon Smith 5.

ST. JOHN – (Leading scorers) Tyreke McElwain 23, Alex Ware 18, Patrick Copenhaver 13.

2nd Round

Ringgold 9 6 4 4 – 23
Lincoln 26 25 9 10 – 70

LINCOLN (9-4) – Bryston Alcorn 10, Bryson Yaden 1, Blake Smith 16, Elijah Frye 5, Darius Napier 2, Jaxon Smith 22, Baylor Mattingly 3, Cruise Wilson 4, Rodney Alcorn 4, Riley Bodner 3.

5th Place Consolation Game

Lincoln 8 22 14 21 10 – 75
Chapmanville 17 16 19 13 14 – 79

LINCOLN (9-5) – Bryston Alcorn 17, Bryson Yaden 1, Blake Smith 24, Elijah Frye 21, Darius Napier 3, Jaxon Smith 9.