Dragons return home to blast Bell in district clash

Harlan+guard+Kyler+McLendon+sailed+to+the+basket+for+two+of+his+26+points+in+the+Green+Dragons+90-59+win+Friday+over+visiting+Bell+County.

Jon Dickenson

Harlan guard Kyler McLendon sailed to the basket for two of his 26 points in the Green Dragons’ 90-59 win Friday over visiting Bell County.

January 14, 2023

Harlan 90, Bell County 59

BELL COUNTY (5-11)
Dawson Woolum 5-8 1-1 13, Blake Burnett 2-9 0-0 4, Cameron Hall 5-13 0-0 11, Cayden Huff 4-6 1-2 9, Cooper Miracle 2-3 0-0 4, Jacob Jones 2-6 1-2 6, Elijah Hampton 0-1 0-0 0, Logan Stepp 0-4 0-0 0, Ethan Buell 4-6 0-0 9, Jaxon Thomas 1-2 0-0 3, Austin Goodin 0-0 0-0 0, Chase Wilder 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 25-59 3-5 59.
HARLAN (17-2)
Kyler McLendon 11-18 0-0 26, Kaleb McLendon 3-10 0-0 9, Trenton Cole 2-5 0-0 6, Jaedyn Gist 11-13 2-3 26, Will Austin 6-9 6-10 19, Dylan Cox 0-0 0-0 0, Matthew Pennington 0-0 0-0 0, Nate Montanaro 1-1 0-0 2, Hunter Clem 0-0 0-0 0, Connor Daniels 0-0 0-0 0, Jake Brewer 0-0 0-0 0, Cameron Maples 0-0 2-2 2, Ethan Shuler 0-0 0-0 0, Jacob Clark 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 34-55 10-15 90.
Bell County 9 18 22 19 – 59
Harlan 26 32 19 13 – 90
3-point goals: Bell County 6-14 (Woolum 2-3, Jones 1-1, Thomas 1-1, Hall 1-2, Buell 1-2, Wilder 0-1, Burnett 0-2, Stepp 0-2), Harlan 12-26 (Kyler McLendon 4-9, Kaleb McLendon 3-8, Gist 2-2, Cole 2-5, Austin 1-2). Rebounds: Bell County 28 (Huff 6, Burnett 5, Miracle 5, Hall 3, Jones 3, Woolum 2, Buell 2, Hampton 1, Stepp 1), Harlan 29 (Gist 9, Cole 6, Austin 6, Kaleb McLendon 5, Kyler McLendon 1, Montanaro 1, Pennington 1). Turnovers: Bell County 17, Harlan 9.

 

Harlan opened the season at home with a win against South Laurel on Nov. 29 then played 17 straight away from home. The Green Dragons made an impressive return with a 90-59 rout of Bell County on Friday.
The Green Dragons scored 26 points in the opening period and had 32 in the second quarter and cruised to the victory.
Junior guard Kyler McLendon and senior forward Jaedyn Gist each scored 26 points for the Dragons. Senior forward Will Austin followed with 19 points. Kaleb McLendon added nine. Trenton Cole chipped in with six. Nate Montanaro and Cameron Maples each had two.
Senior guard Dawson Woolum led the Bobcats with 13 points. Cameron Hall, a sophomore guard, scored 11. Cayden Huff and Ethan Buell each tossed in nine. Jacob Jones added six.
Harlan shot 62 percent from the floor on 34 of 55 shooting. Bell County hit 25 of 59 from the field for 42 percent.
The Dragons nailed 12 3-pointers while Bell High had six.
Austin scored eight points while Gist nailed a 3, had a dunk and scored seven in the opening quarter as Harlan took a 26-9 advantage.
The Dragons opened the second quarter with a 9-3 run as Gist scored six to make it 35-12 at the 5:38 mark.
Kaleb McLendon hit two 3-poibters and Kyler McLendon and Gist each had one as Harlan went into the locker room leading 58-27.
Treys by Kaleb and Kyler McLendon, along with Austin and Cole allowed the lead to grow to 77-49 after the third quarter.
The fourth quarter featured a running clock as Harlan outscored the Bobcats 13-10 in the period.
Austin scored five points in the period, including a dunk. The Dragons hit five of six free throw in the quarter.
Harlan improved to 2-0 in district play and 16-2 overall.
The Green Dragons are off until Friday when they host Middlesboro in a girls/boys district doubleheader.
Bell County (0-2, 5-11) plays Somerset Christian School (2-12) in the Warrior Classic at Southwestern. The Bobcats will host McCreary Central on Tuesday and Oneida Baptist on Friday.
— — —
The Bobcats claimed a 59-56 win over Harlan in the junior varsity game.
Jaxon Thomas led Bell County (6-7) with 23 points. Ethan Buell finished with 13 points. Chase Wilder scored nine.
Dylan Cox fired in 23 points for the 1-3 Green Dragons. Matthew Pennington tossed in 10 points. Connor Daniels followed with eight and Nate Montanaro scored seven. Jake Brewer had six points while Hunter Clem added two.