STANFORD — Emma King scored her 2,000th career point as Lincoln County slammed Wayne County 68-27 in its home opener Tuesday night at J.C. Eddleman in the first game of a girl/boy doubleheader.

King finished with 10 points. The University of Kentucky signee cracked the 2,000-point mark in the second quarter during a 16-0 Lady Patriot run. She was presented with the game ball at midcourt following the win.

Lincoln coach Cassandra McWhorter wanted to stop the game when King reached the milestone, but the senior guard nixed that idea.

“It’s such an accomplishment and a huge honor for her. But how humble of a kid is she that … We talked a little bit and I told her I wanted to stop the game when it happens and she’s like, ‘Coach, I’d rather not stop the game. Let’s just keep playing and maybe we can do it after the game or something,’” said McWhorter. “She didn’t want to stop or disrupt the flow of the game. She’s a humble kid, but she’s worked real hard for that accomplishment and it’s a special moment and she deserved to be recognized.”

The Lady Patriots (2-0) got off to another slow start Tuesday, falling behind 8-2 early, but they answered with an explosive 21-0 scoring spurt to go up 23-8 at the end of the first quarter.

And they never looked back.

Lincoln stifled visiting Wayne while displaying teamwork on the offensive in the dominating home win. The Lady Patriots shot 44 percent from the field, going 28-for-63, while holding Wayne to a cool 21 percent, with just 9 of 43 shot attempts falling. Neither team produced much at the foul line, with the Lady Pats finishing 6-for-8 at the line and the Lady Cards going 7-for-9.

“Still a little bit of a slow start,” said McWhorter. “Friday they were tight because it was their first game on the road. Tonight, they were a little tight because it was their first home game. I know it was on Em’s mind to get those seven out of the way and reach the 2,000 mark, too. We were just a little tight at the beginning, but I thought we settled down and did what we had to do to take care of business.”

“I feel better about this win after a slow start than I did Friday night just because there was more of a rhythm. We were more in sync offensively and that’s easier when shots are falling in.”

Senior point guard Maddy Boyle was good for eight of Lincoln’s 28 made shots as she scored a game-high 19 points to lead the Lady Patriots. Zaria Napier joined Boyle and King in double figures, pushing through six field goals for 14 points in the win.

Haleigh Criswell scored her only points from behind the arc to get Wayne off to a 3-0 start. Amber Jones followed with a bucket and Macey Blevins, who led the Lady Cardinals with nine points, converted on a three-point play to put Wayne up 8-2.

Kaitlynn Wilks, who finished with nine points, scored Lincoln’s only bucket in Wayne’s run. But she would answer two minutes later with her second bucket to ignite the Lady Patriots’ 21-0 run to take control of the game. Napier scored 10 of her 14 points in Lincoln’s opening run, Boyle added six points and King had a 3-pointer to put the Lady Pats up 23-8.

If anyone doubted Lincoln’s dominance in the game by the end of the first quarter, all doubt was erased in the second period as the Lady Patriots rolled off 16 unanswered points to extend their lead to 39-10. Boyle scored six points in the surge and Wilks and King both had five points.

Lincoln led 44-13 at the half and went on to outscore Wayne 24-14 in the second half.

It’s a good way to get the 12th Region going on,” McWhorter said of the win. “Now, we get to take a little bit of time and prepare for next week. We don’t have a game the rest of the week. Hopefully the snow will stay away and we can get in a little practice and get ready for next Monday against a very good South Laurel team.”

at Lincoln Co.

Wayne 10 3 7 7 – 27
Lincoln 23 21 15 9 – 68

WAYNE (1-2) – Mariah Bowlin 3, Jade Turner 2, Haleigh Criswell 3, Macey Blevins 9, Amber Jones 5, Mallory Campbell 5.

LINCOLN (2-0) – Emma King 10, Kaitlynn Wilks 9, Maddy Boyle 19, Trinity Shearer 6, Zaria Napier 14, Lydia Rice 2, Haleigh Releford 8.