Despite a 27-6 season that included four wins in six games against state tournament teams and a top 10 ranking statewide in the RPI system, coach Kyle Jones and the Harlan County Black Bears spent much off the offseason focusing on their ugliest night of basketball.
“I felt we had a really good season last year, but I felt one of the worst games we played was in the regional tournament,” Jones said. “We have a sour taste in our mouths about the Corbin game, and we’re working hard to correct some things. We’re hoping our new offensive system will help get kids more involved and give them more confidence to make plays.”
A 61-53 loss to Corbin in the first round of the 13th Region Tournament served as a disappointing finish to 2023 and provided the Bears with plenty of incentive to find ways to avoid a similar fate in 2024. With six of their top eight players returning, led by two-time all-state guard Trent Noah and standout junior point guard Maddox Huff, the Bears are ranked No. 1 in the 13th Region by the Cats Pause and 18th in the state by the Louisville Courier Journal.
Winning the second regional title in school history won’t be easy though with Corbin bringing back three starters and five of its top eight. Clay has all of its key players back and had a great summer with former HCHS coach Michael Jones now in charge. North and South remain contenders despite losing several key players.
“We feel confident we’re one of the top three or four teams in the region. There will always be pressure on a team with players like Trent and Maddox, but there’s pressure on them as well. I don’t think there’s that much pressure though. You have to play either way, if you’re 1 or 10. We played extremely well all year and lost only six games, including several to teams in the state tournament.
Jones has done his part to prepare his team for the postseason with a brutal schedule that includes at least six teams (Frederick Douglass, DeSales, Woodford County, Bowling Green and Ashland) ranked among the state’s top 25 teams by the Courier Journal. Three other top 25 teams (Great Crossing, Trinity and Newport) are also in the King of the Bluegrass tournament in Louisville and could be opponents. The Bears also play in the prestigious Arby’s Classic in Bristol, as well as the WYMT Mountain Classic.
“We’re excited to build off the success we had last year, and I feel out schedule will prepare us for that. I think it’s the toughest schedule ever in Harlan County, and that’s including my dad’s teams,” said Jones, referring to Mike Jones’ Harlan teams in the mid 1990s that made three trips to the Sweet Sixteen.
A focus for the the Bears in the fall has been a change in offensive philosophy that Jones says will make it harder for defenses for focus on Noah and Huff.
“We’ll have more four and five out concepts with a lot more movement to get kids involved. We felt a lot of teams, and rightfully so, doubled and chased and played junk defenses against Trent and Maddox. We think with this we can make them pay for that sort of thing. We need more contributions from other kids offensively. I think that’s a big key, and we’re confident we’ll get that. We have to have more kids other than Trent and Maddox scoring. It’s hard to beat good teams with just two doing most of the points,” Jones said.
Noah (26.5 points per game last season, 12.8 rebounds per game), a 6-7 senior, helped lead the Bears to the regional finals as an eighth grader in 2020 and has scored over 2,500 points in his career to this point. He committed to South Carolina in the fall and will be the first Harlan County athlete since Charles Thomas in 1995 to play major college basketball.
“Trent plays guard, but he rebounds so well that it’s.a weapon for us,” Jones said. “There were times he would end up with 20 or 25 rebounds, I wondered if anyone else got any sometimes. I tell them in practice all the time that he can’t get every one of them.
“He’s also become more of a vocal leader this year. He always led by example, but he’s more vocal this year, and we need that from him,” Jones said. “The kids look to him in big moments and trust him.”
Huff (16.9, 4.7), at 6-3, enters the season as the fourth-ranked player in the region and is one of the state’s top juniors.
“Everyone knows Maddox is a great player. He’s trying to improve on the defensive end of the floor. That’s not to say he’s not a good defender, but he knows improving there will help him as a college player,” Jones said. “He has worked really hard on getting stronger and quicker. He’s our floor general, so we depend on him to make plays for other people.”
Sophomore guard Reggie Cottrell (2.6), a junior varsity standout last season, will play a key role for the Bears this year as he moves into the starting lineup at wing.
“I think Reggie will be a player that everybody will be surprised by. I think he could be one of the biggest surprises in the entire region this season,” Jones said. “He was very athletic last year, but he’s a lot stronger and confident this year. He has all the ability in the world. How far he goes will be up to him. He’s started to learn how hard you have to work to be good. That’s one good thing about playing with Trent and Maddox because they rub off on younger guys. I think he’ll help us rebounding. He’s a great driver and can finish around the rim, plus he’s a better shooter than people may think.”
Senior forward Caleb Johnson (4.0, 3.1) is one of the Bears’ most athletic players and will move into a starting role after serving as the sixth man last year.
“Caleb is a real athletic kid who is starting to gain confidence,” Jones said. “He knows he’s a senior and this is his last shot. He’s worked hard to improve. He’s a good spot-up shooter. He can knock down open shots. I think he will be impactful on the boards as well.”
Jaycee Carter (3.0, 3.5), a 6-4 junior, returns as the Bears’ center.
“Jaycee is one of the kids who knows his role. It’s hard to find kids like that these days,” Jones said. “He doesn’t care if he scores a lot of points and gets his name in the paper. He’s just worried about helping us win. You’ve got to have kids like that. He’s a good shooter, and we’re allowing him in our new offense to step out and hit shots. I think people will be surprised.”
Brody Napier, a junior guard, could also work into the starting lineup or will play a sixth-man role.
“Brody is a very smart, heady player. We liked what we saw from him this summer,” Jones said. “He always seemed to make the right plays, We’re expecting him to play a big role this year. He helps Maddox and Trent handle the ball, plus he’s a good shooter.”
Sophomore guard Brennan Blevins could also see action, along with several freshmen.
“We like what we’ve seen from Brennan Blevins,” Jones said. “He’s grown a lot this summer and has always been a good athlete. He’s starting to develop some confidence, and we’re hoping he can give us some minutes when we need him.”
The Bears lost senior guard Daniel Carmical to graduation, while three-sport standout Jonah Swanner (9.3, 3.2) was likely lost for the year when he suffered a knee injury during football season.
“We took a blow losing Jonah to an injury. He would have been a three-year starter,” Jones said. “We’ll miss his defense and his aggressiveness. He was a playmaker as well. We’ll have to have some kids pick up the slack.”
The injury to Swanner was a huge blow to the Bears on defense and raised concerns about a lack of depth with only six players back who saw significant action last year,
“The development of our bench will be crucial for our success this. Year,” Jones said.
As a freshman at Harlan in 1996, Jones played on a regional championship team, and he watched his brother, Michael, lead the Bears to their first trip in 2017. There’s no secret getting back to Rupp Arena is the primary goal this season.
“I think the talent in the region has been as good the last few years as it’s been since the mid 90s,” he said. “There will be several really good teams, including us. Four or five teams could win it. The teams in our district will be tough as always. I thought we got a little tougher last year on the boards and on the defensive end. I played on a regional championship team and most teams that win a region are mentally and physically tough, and that’s what you have to be.”