CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Kenwood High beat backyard rivals Northwest on Friday, helped by Jaylen Washington’s 18 points to a 74-55 home court victory.

In the girls game, the results were reversed, with Ta’Mia Scott alone outscoring the host team, leading Northwest to a 68-26 win over the Knights.

Nic Boykin driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ahmad Harvey shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ahmad Harvey shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Aljeric Conyers dunks as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Aljeric Conyers, right, wins the tipoff as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Caleb Grady shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Jaylen Washington is all smiles as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Jaylen Washington and Caleb Grady celebrate a big play by a JV player as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Jaylen Washington shooting with Ta’Carey Monday defending as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Jaylen Washington shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Joshua Youngblood shoots a free throw as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
The Kenwood team rallies as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Keshawn Papillion prepares to shoot as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
KHS Boys coach Chase Cronin as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Nic Boykin driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
NWHS coach Aaron Wallus talks to the team as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Quentavius Barnes shoots a free throw as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Quentavius Barnes shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Scott Batista shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Scott Batista shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Servonte Williams driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Carey Monday driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Carey Monday shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Zy’Kerion Hinton shoots a free throw as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in boys basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)

Boys game

Kenwood jumped out to an early 9-0 lead including a dunk and a four-point play. This opening salvo was part of a 29-point first quarter featuring scores by six different Knights. Defense led to great offense, with active hands creating several turnovers by the Vikings. On offense, the Knights’ ball movement was crisp and clean.

By halftime, Kenwood was up, 44-25. Northwest chipped away at the lead a little in the third quarter, outscoring Kenwood 17-13, but the closest they ever got was within 12 points.

Despite the scoring performance, Kenwood coach Chase Cronin did not want to be known as an offensive team. He said that early on in the season, “on average, we were giving up around 70 points on defense.” With a new focus on defense, however, the Knights have brought that down to about 50 points.

“(The season)’s been a roller coaster,” Cronin said, citing a combination of injuries, discipline and COVID policies that kept his top three performers from playing together. “This is the first time they’ve all been together in … as far back as I can remember.”

Cronin feels the team is moving in the right direction with unselfish play and good ball movement. Early on he sat down with the seniors and talked about playing as a team. “That really starts with your leaders,” he said. “You move the body, you move the ball,” as opposed to the individual play that characterized his squad at the start of the year.

“Caleb Grady, who had three points at halftime, came over to me,” Cronin said when reflecting on the new, unselfish look. “He goes, ‘I have three points. And I’m OK if all I have is three points if we continue to move the ball the way we’re moving the ball.’”

“And that’s just kind of the buy-in that you want, especially here in late January … guys really buying into each other. And that’s huge. Caleb Grady’s a big part of what we want to do.”

Kenwood scoring: Jaylen Washington – 18; Nic Boykin – 14; Quentavius Barnes – 12; Caleb Grady – 9; Aljeric Conyers – 7; Keshawn Papillion – 7; Cam’ron Dowell – 2; Avante Hester – 2; Zy’Kerion Hinton – 2

Northwest scoring: Ta’Carey Monday – 15; Joshua Youngblood – 14; Scott Batista – 13; Ahmad Harvey – 4; Servonte Williams – 3; Hagen Albright – 2; KJ Jones – 2

Dametria Duncan shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Dan’tesha Brandt, left, defended by Ta’Mia Scott as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Emiyah Cobb shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Emiyah Cobb as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Grace Fuaau shoots a free throw as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Iyanna Curtis as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Jamara Trotter shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Kayla Howell drives as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Kayla Howell shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Kendall Myree as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
KHS’s cheer team as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
NWHS’s cheer team as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
NWHS coach Ben Wallace meets with the team as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Paris Outlaw driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Shayanna Mimms shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Mia Scott smiles as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Mia Scott shooting as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Mia Scott wins the tipoff as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Ta’Mia Scott shoots as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)
Winter Thompson driving as Northwest High plays Kenwood High in girls basketball on Jan. 28, 2022. (Ryan Vinson)

Girls game

The girls from Northwest, coming off a fiercely fought victory over Henry County, got to breathe a bit in this one and even crack a smile. Ta’Mia Scott continued her excellent season; the MTSU commit notched 14 of the visitors’ 26 points in the first quarter. She would go on to score 28 points, eclipsing Kenwood’s total of 26 for the game. Defensively, Northwest looked impenetrable and they did it without fouling – Kenwood only attempted four free throws all night.

Asked about the impact of such a comfortable win, Northwest coach Ben Wallace said, “Last year, I think that it helped us that you had games like tonight interspersed between the really tough games. So you had times to rest up. Our top three players, offensively, I feel like last year wore them down at the end of the season. Because they were playing 30 minutes a night against the best teams.”

“We’ve been focusing on (defense). We’ve had some games this year where we laid an offensive egg – we couldn’t hit a shot, we couldn’t get anything going. And when you take a look at it, it was our defensive effort. We play better when we are up-tempo, getting after you, and we can get some steals and things. Just getting a few of those, you start feeling good. Next thing you know, we’re knocking shots down.”

Even when plays went against them, the Lady Vikings were smiling and joking with each other, showing a level of confidence they have earned this season. “Early in the year, we weren’t doing that, and I blame the coaching. I set up a schedule that challenged us and we got into a place where we played back-to-back-to-back against good teams and not everything was going our way.”

“We lost our confidence, we lost our mojo, and I feel like we’re getting it back, and that’s what you want at the end of the season,” Wallace said with a smile. “We feel like we’re the best team. You got to go prove that, that’s the thing.”

Northwest scoring: Ta’Mia Scott – 28; Kayla Howell – 17; Emiyah Cobb – 11; Jada Brooks – 5; Neighna Dailey – 3; Winter Thompson – 2; Paris Outlaw – 2; Kendall Myree – 1

Kenwood scoring: Iyanna Curtis – 12; Shayanna Mimms – 8; Dan’tesha Brandt – 3; Naveah White – 2; Jamara Trotter – 1