MANCHESTER — What the Harlan County Black Bears lack in height has to be made up with heart and hustle if they are to continue their string of successful seasons in 2026.
They had neither Saturday at Clay County High School in an 86-67 loss to Powell County in the Bobby Keith Classic.
The Black Bears could not overcome a 42-21 deficit on the boards against one of the 14th Region’s top teams. Other than showing signs of heart in the third quarter when they briefly cut a 10-point halftime deficit to six by outrebounding the Pirates 8-7 in the period, the Bears sleepwalked through the game. The Bears gave up multiple shots on several trips down the court by watching instead of blocking out.
“We knew they were good, and we knew they were big and physical and could shoot. Rebounding has been our Achilles heel at times, and when we don’t rebound collectively we struggle against teams like that,” Harlan County coach Kyle Jones said,. “They got out to a hot start in the first quarter and it was kind of catch up the rest of the game. We came out ready to play in the third quarter, and you have to be able to overcome adversity if you are going to be a good team. We didn’t do that today. I told them the district games will be like this, and you have to be ready to play every time you step on the floor. If you get beat by 20 rebounds you aren’t going to win.”
Sophomore guard Connor Morguson led the 9-6 Pirates with 23 points. Senior forward Riley Faulkner added 21points and eight rebounds. Senior center Tucker Ramsey chipped in with 16 points.
Junior guard Trent Cole led the 9-6 Bears with 21 points. Junior guard Landon Brock was one of the few bright spots as he hit seven of 10 shots off the bench for 18 points. Reggie Cottrell and Brennan Blevins added 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Morguson hit four of five shots in the first quarter while Faulkner added three baskets as Powell took control with a 10-0 run late in the period to go up 22-11. The Bears hit only four of 16 shots and were outrebounded 13-4.
The lead alternated between 10 and 12 points most of the second quarter with Brock hitting three of four shots to keep the Bears in the game as they trailed 33-23 at halftime.
A three-point play by Blevins cut the deficit to six before the Pirates reeled off nine straight, converting a couple of steals into baskets as the Bears put up little resistance. Cole and Brock sparked an 8-2 run that got HC as close as 11 before Powell closed with a 7-4 run to take a 63-49 lead into the final period.
Harlan County forced five Powell turnovers in the fourth quarter but missed 14 of 20 shots and was outrebounded 14-6.
The Bears return to action Monday at Leslie County.