Trailing by seven points at halftime to the host Harlan County Lady Bears in the first round of the 52nd District Tournament, the Harlan Lady Dragons and coach Mackenzie King Varner went to their strength in the second half, which meant a steady dose of Kylie Noe and Aymanni Wynn.
Noe finished with 23 points and Wynn added 21 as Harlan rallied for a 57-55 victory, earning a spot in the district championship game for the first time since Varner was a senior in 2018.
“It means a lot. It’s always fun to beat them on their home court,” Varner said. “They have really good players. It was a testament to how hard these girls have worked to win tonight.
Wynn hit three of three shots in the third quarter as the Lady Dragons outscored HC to take a one-point lead. Noe connected on three of three shots in the fourth quarter.
“That was the same game plan we had the second time we played them — get the ball in the paint,” Varner said. “We have a mismatch. We’re bigger and we took advantage of it.”
Harlan County coach Anthony Nolan said the Lady Dragons’ success in the paint was the difference in the second half.
“We talked at halftime and said you can’t let them bully their way into the paint,” he said. “We came out and three or four of the first possessions they got within a few feet of the basket off the dribble and broke us down. Instead of angling and forcing them wide that took the momentum away from us in the third quarter. We said we can’t let them get in the painted area off the dribble. We also missed some free throws and shots late, and that changes the complexion of how you execute down the stretch. It was frustrating, but Harlan played hard. It was an entertaining game. I thought both teams battled.”
Senior guard Ella Karst closed her stellar high school career with a 28-point night to lead the Lady Bears, finishing second in both school and county history in scoring.
The game was tied at 51 with 3:12 left after a Noe basket before each team missed opportunities to take the lead. Harlan County’s Faith Hoskins hit one of two at the line with 51 seconds left, then Wynn and Hoskins traded free throws before Noe went the length of the court to put Harlan ahead to stay with a three-point play with 17.5 seconds to play.
“She just decided to do that. She knew we needed a quick basket and she just took it all the way,” Varner said.
Kylee Runions, an eighth grader, drew a foul with 7.1 seconds left and hit one of two. Hoskins grabbed the rebound after Runions missed the second shot but was unable to convert. Harlan’s Emma Owens, who finished with 11 points, hit one of two for a two-point lead with 1.9 seconds to play. Harlan County set up a play after a timeout, and Karst was able to get off a shot just inside the 3-point line after a long pass, but the ball bounced off the rim.
Senior forward Paige Phillips added 13 points for the Lady Bears.
The lead changed hands nine times in the opening quarter as both offenses flourished with Harlan hitting seven of 11 shots and HC connecting on five of 12. Rhymer and Karst each had two baskets as the Lady Bears led 20-19 going into the second period.
Noe had the only two baskets for Harlan in the second quarter as the Lady Dragons missed 10 of 12 shots. Karst had two baskets as the Lady Bears built a 34-27 and closed the half with a 9-2 run.
Harlan County ended the season with a 16-14 record and will miss the 13th Region Tournament for only the third time in the 16-year history of the school.
“We lost four starters, then had (starting guard) Reagan (Clem) go down (with a knee injury) after we got into a pretty good rhythm. The kids overcame a lot of adversity,” Nolan said. “They battled all night and have been coachable all year. They are great kids who have never been a discipline problem, either with the team or at school. I hate it for the seniors because they stuck it out through covid and everything. They will make great individuals in the future.”
Harlan will play Bell County on Thursday at 7 for the 52nd District Tournament title.