LONDON — After a blowout 39-point win a night earlier at home against Middlesboro, the Harlan County Black Bears found a tougher test Saturday in the Raymond Reed Classic at South Laurel against defending 8th Region champ Woodford County
The Black Bears never trailed after midway through the first quarter against the state’s seventh-ranked squad, but the Yellow Jackets cut an eight-point HCHS lead to three in 43 seconds. Senior guard Trent Noah took over at that point, hitting a floater in the lane and then cashing in on two free throws in each of the Bears’ next three possessions to put away a 69-63 victory.
“I think we guarded a lot better than we did last night,” Harlan County coach Kyle Jones said. “We played a really good team. They were athletic and physical. It was a good test for us. I was pleased with how we handled the late game situation. We handled the ball and hit free throws.”
Noah finished with 33 points as the Black Bears improved to 18-2. Maddox Huff added 14 points,
The 13-3 Yellow Jackets were led by junior point guard Santonio Waide with 25 points. Layton Starks and Omare Jointer added 15 and 13 points, respectively.
Harlan County led by five at halftime when Huff directed an impressive third quarter performance by the Bears’ offense. Harlan County hit its first six shots, including two backdoor passes from Huff to Caleb Johnson, as the lead grew to 10. Huff found Noah for a dunk and then for a layup to close the quarter. Noah added a couple of long passes off rebounds for easy baskets in the run.
“We work in practice on getting the ball up the court fast. That’s the way we want to play,” Jones said. “We want to get easy buckets when we can. It’s been beneficial for us so far this year.
Jaycee Carter and Noah hit early 3s as HCHS went up 8-2 before Woodford answered with a 7-0 run to take its first lead. A Noah basket and Brody Napier trey helped the Bears take a 13-11 lead after one quarter.
Noah had three baskets in a 7-2 HC spurt to start the second quarter as the Bears’ advantage grew to seven. Huff heated up with three baskets in the second quarter to help the Bears take a 30-25 lead into halftime.
Harlan County will return to action Friday at home in a girls/boys doubleheader against Harlan.