13th REGION FINALS

The Corbin Redhounds saw its dream of a third straight Rupp Arena appearance disappear Monday night in the 13^th Region championship game at The Arena in a 54-49 overtime loss to the Bell County Bobcats.

The 2011 championship game was a classic featuring a little bit of everything from a slow down tactic by the Bobcats to a 12-point rally by the Redhounds to an overtime period.

It was a three-point basket by Corbin’s Hunter Sizemore that snatched the ‘Hounds from defeat in regulation play, but six free throws in the final seconds by Kyle Lee that doomed another comeback.

The Redhounds were their own worst enemy in the early going as they missed their first three shots and had a turnover against the stingy Bobcat defense before scoring their first basket at the 4:54 mark.

Bell County (22-6) employed a deliberate offense in the first half as the Bobcats took an 11-7 lead at the end of one quarter. The Redhounds (24-7) trailed 8-2 before Travis Smith took charge and pulled the ‘Hounds within one 8-7 with :45 left in the period. A basket by John Dudley Hilton accounted for the margin at the end of one.

Corbin Coach Tony Pietrowski wasn’t surprised by the deliberate play by the Bobcats. “They have been deliberate the entire season,” he said.

The ‘Cats stayed at the slow pace and tried to pull Corbin from its zone defense to no avail. Corbin took advantage of several missed shots by the Bobcats to open the second quarter and tied the game on a drive down the lane by Taylor Jones. Jones’ spin move to the basket evened the score at 11-11. The game was tied once again before Lee put the ‘Cats up by two (15-13).

However, Smith’s 3-pointer gave the Redhounds a 16-15 lead with four minutes remaining. Bell County went on a 7-3 run to lead at the half 22-19.

The pace really slowed in the third quarter as the Bobcats held the ball out front for long periods of time against the Corbin zone. Bell County outscored the Redhounds 6-4 with all three baskets coming on plays to the inside. Justin Patterson and Ryan Cox accounted for all three baskets. Smith and Sizemore collected the four points by the Redhounds.

Corbin started the fourth quarter much like they did in the first period. However, it was three turnovers and an offensive foul that stalled the scoring.

A 3-pointer by Lee, who finished the game with 26 points, saw the Bobcats take a 35-23 lead with 5:13 left in the game.

However, a Corbin timeout after that basket and a tenacious full court defense saw the Redhounds make a near incredible comeback in less than five minutes, It was a stunning finish that lead to an overtime period.

After the timeout, Corbin hit seven unanswered free throws to climb within five (35-30) after Brody Freeman sank two free throws with 3:34 left on the clock.

The Redhounds trailed by six when Lee hit a pair of free throws at the 1:22 mark, but Freeman was fouled on a three-point attempt from the corner 11 seconds later. He calmly nailed all three to pull the Redhounds within three (42-39).

Smith stole the ball and went in for a lay-up as Bell County tried to get the ball down the court. He got his second steal at midcourt on the ensuing play, but missed the shot. He was fouled and missed both attempts with :24 left in the game.

Four seconds later Lee tried to seal the win with two free throws, but Sizemore’s three-point play tied the game as the teams went to overtime.

       “All year long our kids have been in a situation where people counted them out—I        simple reminded them that we had defied the odds the entire year and we could do it again,” said Pietrowski. “Those kids don’t have an ounce of quit and it showed during the comeback.”

In the overtime, Lee gave his team a two-point lead, but Freeman came back with three-of-four free throws to put the Redhounds on top, 47-46.

However, it was from the line that the Bobcats pulled out the win in the final minute and a half. After a Ben Madon basket put Bell County ahead, 48-47, the Bobcats were six-of-six and pulled away for the five-point win.

Smith led the Redhounds with 20 points while Sizemore had one of his best games of the season with 13 points. Freeman finished with 10 points. Lee led all scorers with 26 points while Madon finished with 12 points.

Corbin will lose four starting seniors off this year’s team. Pietrowski said that this has been a special group to coach. “This group is very special to me.  They should be mentioned in the same breathe as some of the great teams that have come through our program,” said Pietrowski. “They are the epitome of putting your team first, accepting a role and working hard each day.  They can hold their heads high as they were a great representation of what we pride ourselves in.”

Bell Co. 54, Corbin 49

Corbin                        7   12   4   21     5- 49

Bell Co.         11   11   6   16   10- 54

   Corbin (49) – Sizemore 13, Jones 4, Freeman 10, Taylor 2, Smith 20, West 0, Igo ).

   Bell Co. (54) – Patterson 2, Lefevers 4, Madon 12, Lee 26, Hilton 4, Cox 6.