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By Paul Lunsford

Contributing Writer

With sophomore guard Maddox Huff out with an injury and the challenging effort Barbourville was giving on Thursday, junior guard Trent Noah turned it up a notch for his Black Bears.

Noah poured in 40 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as Harlan County closed the regular season with a 75-70 win over the Tigers.

The Black Bears completed the regular season 11-0 against 13th Region opponents and 25-5 overall.

HCHS will open the postseason on Tuesday in the first round of the 52nd District Tournament against host Middlesboro at 6 p.m.

On Thursday, the Bears got 15 points from Daniel Carmical, including five 3-pointers. Caleb Johnson, who was starting instead of Huff, scored ten points and pulled down 11 rebounds.

Jonah Swanner and Reggie Cottrell each added four points for Harlan County. Jaycee Carter tossed in two points.

Senior guard Matthew Warren fired in 21 points for the Tigers. Seniors Travis Scott and K.T. Turner each added 16 points. Ty Clark and Ethan Smith scored seven and six points, respectively.

Barbourville dropped to 16-10 on the season.

After one quarter, Harlan County opened the game with a 19-15 showing.

The lead grew to 36-30 at halftime, but the Tigers pulled within 51-48 after the third period.

Noah would score 12 points in the final quarter as Harlan County went on for the victory.

Harlan County shot 54 percent from the floor on 29 of 54 and was eight of 19 from behind the arc. The Tigers were five of 20.

The Bears connected on nine of 13 free throws.

HCHS outrebounded the Tigers 37-22. The Black Bears committed 14 turnovers compared to nine for Barbourville.

It was Harlan County’s fifth straight win heading into the district tournament, which beings Tuesday for the Bears. They will play Middlesboro.

Bears upend Whitley

A matchup of two teams with 20-plus wins on the season and with a postseason feel saw host Harlan County outlast Whitley County 87-80 last Tuesday.

Junior guard Trent Noah poured in 38 points and grabbed ten rebounds to lead the Black Bears, who played without sophomore guard Maddox Huff.

Junior guard Jonah Swanner ran the HC offense and scored 20 points. Senior guard Daniel Carmical hit five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points.

Jaycee Carter tossed in six points for the Bears. Caleb Johnson scored four, while Jeremiah Clem added two.

Carmical and Clem, the team’s only two seniors, were honored before the game.

Senior guard Ashton Reynolds powered the 20-9 Colonels with 22 points and seven rebounds. Jamie Fuson, also a senior guard, followed with 16 points. Bryce Anderson and Brayden Mahan both scored 12. Evan Ellis, an eighth-grader, added nine points.

Harlan County jumped out to a 21-14 advantage after eight minutes.

The second quarter saw the Colonels cut the deficit to 38-34 at halftime.

The Black Bears built the lead to 60-51 at the end of the third quarter.

Both teams turned up the offense in the final period as the Bears used a 29-27 edge to seal the victory.

The Black Bears hit 32 of 55 from the field for 58 percent and sank six 3-pointers

The Bears held a 27-24 rebounding advantage.

Harlan County committed seven turnovers and hit 17 of 20 free throws.

Lady Bears’ huge comeback

A second-half dominance led the Lady Bears (21-8) past visiting Owsley County 55-49 last Tuesday.

Harlan County trailed 28-10 at halftime before Ella Karst and her teammates began to fight back.

Karst was held to one basket in the first half but finished with 21 points. Taytum Griffin followed with 12 points, and Hailey Austin scored ten.

Jaylin Smith contributed eight points and 12 rebounds for the Lady Bears. Taylor Lunsford tossed in three, while Paige Phillips added one point.

“We were tentative the first, and shots were not falling,” said Harlan County coach Anthony Nolan. “Owsley has a great team, and they were aggressive the first half. The second half, we asserted ourselves on both ends of the court.”

The Lady Owls took a 17-6 lead after eight minutes of play. Owsley’s largest lead of the night was 19.

“We dug a hole early, but the team play in the second half was impressive,” added Nolan.

Freshman forward Addison Terry paced the Lady Owls with 20 points. Carly Smith, a junior guard, tossed in 13 points. Macy Brown, an eighth-grader, added seven points and 12 rebounds.

The Lady Bears outscored Owsley County 21-8 in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 36-31. Karst poured in 13 points in the period.

A fourth-quarter outburst allowed HC to have a 24-13 scoring advantage. Griffin scored 10 in the quarter for the Lady Bears.

Owsley County held a 32-30 edge on the boards. The Lady Owls committed 14 turnovers while HC made 13.

The Lady Bears game with Jenkins was dropped to allow Nolan to add the 14th Region contending Lady Owls to the schedule.

The visiting Lady Bears dropped a 64-29 decision to Southwestern last Friday.

Hailey Austin scored 11 points, and Ella Karst added 10.

Harlan County shot 19 percent (nine of 48) from the field.

Taylor Lunsford had three points and five rebounds for the Lady Bears.

HC plays Harlan on Monday in the opening round of the 52nd District Tournament at Middlesboro.