CORBIN — A showdown for the 13th Region Tournament title that had been expected since this time a year ago became a reality Monday as defending champ North Laurel took on Bell County in a battle of the two teams that had been ranked 1-2 all year.
North won its fourth regional title in a five-year span, racing to a 13-0 lead and standing ahead all the way in a 51-38 victory.
Senior forward Reece Davidson, the region’s player of the year, scored 15 points, pulled down six rebounds and added five assists to lead the 28-7 Jaguars. Sophomore forward Corey Cunagin added 12 points
Senior guard Blake Burnett scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the 27-7 Bobcats. Junior forward Ethan Buell added 10 points.
Davidson started the Jaguars’ 13-0 run with a jumper that preceded a barrage of 3s — one by Colton Rawlings followed by two from Kaiden Allen. Davidson capped the surge when he found Cunagin for a basket at the 3:42 mark.
Burnett ended the Bobcats’ drought with a 3 in front of the North bench with 2:49 to play in the opening quarter. Burnett muscled his way to the basket twice before the quarter ended, cutting the deficit to 13-7 by the end of the period.
North had an offensive drought of its own that continued well into the second quarter, reaching almost nine minutes as the Bobcats cut the deficit to two on baskets by Gavin Barton and Jaxon Thomas. Another Davidson to Cunagin pass for a layup with 2:59 left in the half pushed the Jaguars’ lead to 15-11 with 2:59 to play in the half. A Thomas 3 pulled the Bobcats within one before a Davidson jumper at the 1:44 mark. Bell held for a final shot but Burnett’s shot over Davidson was off the mark.
North pushed its lead to 26-18 midway through the third quarter as Allen and Rawlings each hit 3s and Davidson connected on a jumper in the lane. A three-point play by Braxton Ferguson was the only basket for Bell in the first half of the period. Cayden Huff hit three of four free throws to cut the deficit to seven. Cunagin and Ethan Buell traded baskets before two free throws from Davidson closed the scoring with North up 32-23 heading into the final period. Allen’s 3 to open the fourth quarter expanded North’s lead to 12. A Davidson 3 made it a 13-point game before Burnett and Buell led a 6-0 run to make the score 38-31. Elza and Cunagin each scored for a 42-31 lead with 3:50 left. The Bobcats were unable to hit enough shots to make a run as North put the game away at the free throw line.
“Tonight was a tough one,” Bell County coach Brad Sizemore said. “You can’t get behind that many points to start the game, but I’m proud of how our guys fought back and got back in the game. At the end of the day we didn’t shoot the ball well and didn’t make enough plays to get it done. I’m really proud of the year these guys had and all the hard work they have put in. This has been one of my favorite teams to coach and a season we can all be proud of.”
The Jaguars will play the 4th Region champs next week in the state tournament.
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North Laurel (51) — Cooper Elza 7, Jordan Rawlings 8, Kaiden Allen 6, Reece Davidson 15, Corey Cunagin 12, R.J. Noble 0, Cam Anderson 3.
Bell County (38) — Blake Burnett 14, Jaxon Thomas 5, Braxton Ferguson 4, Ethan Buell 10, Cayden Huff 3, Gavin Barton 2.
North Laurel 13 4 15 19 — 51 Bell County 7 7 9 15 — 38
