One week after breaking Harlan County’s 22-game region and 18-game district win streaks with a win last Tuesday on Log Mountain, the Bell County Bobcats shattered an even longer one Tuesday as Cayden Huff’s putback at the buzzer sent them to a hard-fought 54-52 victory. The loss was the first at home for the Bears since they fell to Madison Southern on Jane. 21, 2002, ending a 24-game streak that included the 20 home games of coach Kyle Jones’ three-year tenure as head coach.
Harlan County knocked off the Bobcats three times last year on the way to a 13th Region title, and Bell coach Brad Sizemore said in the preseason that his team was looking forward to the challenge of breaking through against the Bears this season. It was the first win at HCHS for Bell County since Feb. 25, 2011, which was the last regional championship season for the Bobcats.
“We had a tough game last night against Perry Central with a lot of games lately, and we missed some shots early we normally make,” Sizemore said. “We knew it was going to be a tough game. Harlan County has an awesome team with excellent players who are well-coached. I’m just happy for our guys. We’ve been talking all year about not forgetting about the bad times. We had guys crying in the locker room when they couldn’t get it done. We used that for fuel. I thought we came out and guarded as best we could and made plays down the stretch. We’ve talked all year that if you do things the right way sometimes the ball will find your hands. It came right to Huff and he made a big shot. It was an unbelievable game, but in the grand scheme of things it’s another regular season game, and we just have to keep working and get ready for the tournament.”
“All streaks have to come to an end. We just have to start over,” Jones said.
Junior guard Blake Burnett was one of four Bobcats in double figures with 18 points. Senior guard Cameron Hall added 13., Huff and Ethan Buell each scored 10 as the Bobcats improved to 21-4 overall and clinched the 52nd District’s top seed with a 6-0 record. HCHS defeated Bell County in the 2A Section 7 finals, but that game doesn’t count in the district standings.
Senior guard Maddox Huff, who has been battling the flu since the weekend, led the 17-7 Bears with 19 points. Senior guard Brody Napier added 16 points.
“That was two really good teams battling, I thought our kids played hard, and we adjusted a little how we played with a mixture of man and zone,” Jones said. “It came down to a few mental breakdowns, but I told them in the locker room that we have to learn from it and be glad it didn’t happen in the district or region. I didn’t go in screaming or yelling. I thought both teams played hard, and they got the last shot.”
Bell County played very deliberately early, running over a minute off the clock on its first possession. The Bobcats led 10-9 at the end of the period as Burnett and Hall each had two baskets.
HCHS came back to take a 24-23 lead at halftime as Trent Cole and Jaycee Carter each had two baskets for the Bears.
Bell raced to a 37-29 lead midway through the third quarter as Jaxon Thomas, Buell and Hall each hit 3-pointers. Napier brought the Bears back as he reeled off nine unanswered points to put HCHX up by one, at 38-37, going into the final period.
“I thought that was one of the best games Brody has played. He showed a lot of leadership and made big shots,” Jones said. “If he continues to do that, it makes us a lot better.”
The lead changed hands several times in the fourth quarter. Napier’s two free throws with 2:06 left gave Harlan County its last lead at 50-49. The first of two Cayden Huff putbacks in the period gave Bell a 51-50 lead. Buell hit one of two at the line with 25.7 seconds to play. Harlan County’s Huff tied the game with a jumper with 11 seconds left. Burnett went the length of the court and missed a short jumper that was batted up in the air on the rebound and into the arms of Huff, who put up the game-winner as time expired.
Harlan County plays host to Middlesboro on Friday in another district doubleheader. Bell County will play host to Corbin on Monday.