Coach Derrick Akal’s youth-laden Harlan boys basketball team ended the regular season Friday night on a sour note, falling to Knox Central 79-48.
The Panthers converted 10 shots from behind the 3-point arc and blended a balanced scoring attack with a tenacious effort at the defensive end of the court to pull away from the Green Dragons.
Harlan (5-24) jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead, with freshman Ethan Huff draining a 3-point shot to spearhead the early run by the Green Dragons.
And then the roof caved in.
Knox Central scored the next 11 points to assume a lead it would not relinquish. A 3-point basket by Harlan freshman Izack Saylor stopped the run, before the Panthers reeled off a 9-0 streak to help stake them to a 20-10 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the opening quarter.
An inside basket by freshman Eli Noe and a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Saylor trimmed the Panthers’ lead to 21-17 after eight minutes.
Knox Central (21-5) heated up from long range during the second quarter, with senior Tydus Summers and junior Evan Taylor each converting a pair of 3-point shots.
Harlan trailed 39-27 at halftime.
The Green Dragons turned the ball over on their first two possessions of the third quarter and Knox Central put together a 13-3 scoring run to assume command of the contest. Freshman Grayson Burton buried three 3-point shots during the stanza, and the Panthers led 66-37 heading into the final quarter.
Both coaches substituted freely during the final eight minutes, and the Panthers led by as many as 34 points before the final buzzer sounded.
Taylor led all scorers with 16 points for Knox Central. Burton, who scored 36 points in a December win over Harlan, scored 15 points Friday. Summers and sophomore Nathan Dunn chipped in with 13 and 12 points, respectively, for the Panthers.
Saylor scored a team-high 13 points for Harlan, while freshman Kobe Noe finished with 11 points.
Harlan opens 52nd District Tournament play Tuesday at home against Harlan County. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Knox Central plays Saturday at Perry County Central, before opening 51st District Tournament play Tuesday against Lynn Camp. Knox Central is the No. 1 in the four-team district event at Barbourville.
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Knox Central outscored Harlan 16-6 during the fourth quarter of the junior varsity game Friday night and went on to post a 58-48 victory.
Tyler Centers scored a team-high 15 points for the Panthers, while Luke Olmstead and Elijah Carey added 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Harlan got a game-high 16 points from sophomore Dalton Halcomb. Eli Noe finished with 13. Caden Mefford tossed in six, followed by Dylan Collins with four, Braxton Rowe and Braden Lucas with three each, Hunter Brock with two and Gibson Wilder with one,.
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Knox Central 79, Harlan 48
KNOX CENTRAL (21-5)
Grayson Burton 15, Evan Taylor 16, Nathan Dunn 12, Austin Bargo 6, Luke Olmstead 4, Christian Bargo 5, Tydus Summers 13, Hayden Melton 4, Jonathan Hobbs 1, Nicholas Perkins 3, Conner Mills 0, Evan Hubbard 0, Jaxson Bargo 0.
HARLAN (5-24)
Izack Saylor 13, Dylan Cox 3, Kobe Noe 11, Jaxson Perry 6, Ethan Huff 7, Eli Noe 6, Braxton Rowe 2, Gibson Wilder 0, Dylan Collins 0, Dalton Halcomb 0, Hunter Brock 0.

Knox Central 21 18 27 13 — 79
Harlan 17 10 10 11 — 48