Friday Night Highlights: High School Basketball Results for January 19, 2018

A pair of boys-girls double headers highlighted the high school basketball action in our coverage area Friday evening.

Whitley goes 0-2 at South Laurel
50th District rivals Whitley County and South Laurel squared off in London, with both the Colonels and the Lady Colonels falling to the host Cards and Lady Cards. The boys game was a thriller, but South was able to hold on in the end, pulling out a narrow 57-53 victory. With the loss, Whitley now sits at 6-12 on the year, 0-2 in district play.

Meanwhile, the Lady Colonels had a five-game win streak broken Friday when they were defeated by the Lady Cardinals, 77-46. That puts them at 13-4 on the year, 1-2 in district play, ahead of another big district matchup Monday evening at Williamsburg High School. Tipoff for that contest is currently set for 7:30 p.m.

The Whitley boys are scheduled to go on the road Saturday to play at Mercer County. They will return home to host defending 13th Region champions Harlan County on Monday, and then they too will make the short trip across town to face Williamsburg Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Corbin goes 2-0 versus Knox
In other boys-girls double header action Friday, the Corbin Redhounds and Lady Hounds hosted Knox Central at Gilliam Gymnasium. The girls game was originally scheduled to be played at an earlier date, but was moved to this night due to recent inclement weather. The boys game, on the other hand, is one that many area sports fans have had circled on their calendars since the epic Hounds versus Panthers showdown that main evented the 2017 Cumberland Falls Invitational Tournament last month.

As most already know, Knox Central won that CFIT championship game in somewhat controversial fashion. Corbin has been eager to gain some retribution ever since, and on Friday they finally got their chance. However, before that highly anticipated contest could play itself out the Lady Hounds and Lady Panthers met in what ended up being an extremely competitive matchup.

In the end, Corbin was able to secure the 70-68 victory, improving them to 6-12 overall and giving them four wins in their last six outings. Junior Makenzie Grant led the way for the Lady Hounds against Knox with 18 points. Fellow junior Britnee Barnett chipped in 12 points, while junior Jayden Robertson scored 11. Senior Cora Bo Stevens finished with 10.

The Corbin girls will hope to keep their positive momentum going Saturday when they travel to London to face the North Laurel Lady Jaguars at 3:30 p.m. They will be back at home Monday when they are scheduled to host Lincoln County at 7:30 p.m.

Finally, in the nightcap Friday, the much anticipated rematch between the Corbin and Knox Central boys was a lopsided affair as the Redhounds avenged their loss earlier in the season in the Cumberland Falls Invitational and dominated the Panthers, 81-67.

Corbin got off to a blistering start, missing only two shots in the first quarter to seize a 24-13 lead, and never looked back. By the end of the third quarter the lead had spread to 18, 62-44, and the rout was on.

The Redhounds big three scorers — Andrew Taylor, Chase Sanders and Chandler Stewart — all scored in double figures. Sanders led the way with 27. Taylor had 21 and Stewart finished with 18. Corbin coupled hot shooting with crisp passing and disruptive defense to put away the Panthers.

Next up for the Redhounds will be an appearance in East Jessamine High School’s Jaguar Classic on Saturday, followed by a trip to face 50th District foes South Laurel Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Coverage from these games and much, much more will be available inside next Wednesday’s print edition of the News Journal!

Teaser photo courtesy of ASHLEY NORVELL