Harlan County added two more wins to its summer record Wednesday in a day of scrimmage at the HCHS gym, edging South Laurel 68-66 before rolling past Knox Central 96-42.
Despite losing four starters, South Laurel pushed the Bears to the limit as standout junior forward Jordan Mabe showed he is one of the region’e elite players. Sophomore guard Garrison Brown also played well for the Cardinals.
Senior guard Trent Noah led the Bears with a 29-point effort. Reggie Cottrell added 12, followed by Caleb Johnson with 11, Jaycee Carter with 10 and Brody Napier with six.
Noah had 15 points in the opening half while Cottrell and Napier added two 3-pointers each to help the Bears built a 37-32 lead.
South took a 46-43 lead early in the second half before Noah sparked a 12-2 run with a dunk sandwiched around baskets from Johnson and Cottrell. Two straight treys by Noah appeared to put Harlan County in control with a five-point lead, but Brown answered with five straight for the Cardinals to tie the game in the closing seconds. Cottrell worked his way down the lane for the winning basket with 16 seconds to play.
All five starters reached double figures against Knox Central, led by Cottrell with 19. Noah scored 16, followed by Carter with 15, Napier with 14 and Johnson with 11. Cole Cornett, a freshman guard, came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers in an 11-point effort. Landon Brock, a freshman guard, added eight points. Freshman center Shemarr Carr scored two.
Noah’s dunk highlighted a 13-3 run to start the scrimmage as the Bears had success in a run-and-gun first half that saw the Bears outscore KC 52-18 as all five starters had at least three baskets in the half while Carter, Noah and Johnson dominated the glass. Noah had 14 points in the half while Cottrell and Carter added 10 and nine, respectively.
Harlan County edged South Laurel 43-41 in junior varsity action, then coasted past Knox Central 47-29. South Laurel downed HCHS 43-39 in a freshman game.
South Laurel rolled to a 75-46 win over Knox Central in varsity action and downed the Panthers 51-43 in a junior varsity scrimmage.
The Bears again played without two starters from last year in Maddox Huff and Jonah Swanner.
Harlan County will return to action Monday at home against Knott Central.