Tuesday Night Highlights: Corbin, W’burg split in district double header

Read on for results from boys and girls high school basketball action from Tuesday, January 30…

Williamsburg girls basketball head coach Randy Crider described his team’s experience in last week’s All “A” state championship tournament as “amazing,” adding that it was “truly a blessing” to be able to lead the Lady Jackets as they made history in the program’s first-ever appearance in an All “A” state tourney.

The Lady Jackets certainly impressed with their performance on the court last week, advancing all the way to the tournament semifinals before falling to a tough Shelby Valley team Saturday afternoon. However, with that experience in the rearview mirror, Crider and company must now refocus their energy on what remains of the 2017-18 season.

That effort began Tuesday, when the Lady Jackets hosted the district rival Corbin Lady Hounds at WHS. The Lady Hounds won the last matchup between these two teams, 47-39, when they hosted the Jackets at CHS back on January 5.

Williamsburg was able to even up the score in the rematch, though, winning 46-27 to improve to 16-8 overall, 1-3 in district play. With the loss, Corbin falls to 7-17, 1-4.

Williamsburg 46, Corbin 27
W’burg – 12 14 13 7 – 46
Corbin – 5 6 6 10 – 27
WB – Hall 15, Tye 9, Abbott 5, K. Gibson 6, Lester 2, Chapman 8, Caddell 1
CHS – Warren 4, Steely 5, Robertson 4, Scott 1, Faulkner 3, Sutton 5, Stewart 5

Next up for the Lady Jackets will be a home game against Barbourville this Friday at 7:30 p.m.. The Lady Hounds will host Whitley County in another 50th District contest Friday at 6:00 p.m.

Prior to Tuesday’s game between the Lady Jackets and the Lady Hounds, the Williamsburg and Corbin boys squared off, with Corbin cruising to an easy 91-52 victory. The win improves their record to 16-4, 3-1 ahead of a home game against Whitley County this Friday evening.

Tuesday’s game marked the return of Redhounds Andrew Taylor and Cameron Maguet, who had been serving a three-game suspension for a recent violation of team rules. After helping his team get the win in his first game back, Taylor commented that he feels as if the Hounds are stronger than ever, but added there is still plenty of room for improvement.

“It was good for them to get to play at least a couple of games without me,” Taylor said of his recent suspension. “It helps us to be able to prepare for different situations, and it gave me the opportunity to sit back and watch some things from a coach’s perspective. I don’t feel like we’re at our best right now, but we’re getting closer every game.”

As for the Yellow Jackets, they now stand at 9-12, 1-3 ahead of a home game against Rockcastle County Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Corbin 91, Williamsburg 52
Corbin – 32 23 18 18 – 91
W’burg – 12 16 6 18 – 52
CHS – Barton 2, Maguet 4, Sanders 15, Stewart 23, A. Taylor 29, Unthank 11, M. Taylor 4, Rice 3
WB – Cunningham 12, Rose 20, Stohn Hunter 4, Purdie 2, Poore 2, Brown 4, Jeffers 3, Thomas 2, Manning 3

In other action Tuesday, the Whitley County Colonels fell to 7-17 on the year after an 87-67 loss at Knox Central, and the Lynn Camp Wildcats improved to 17-3 with a 96-59 win over visiting Jellico, TN.