Harlan opened defense of its 13th Region All “A” Classic title in dominating fashion Monday, holding Red Bird scoreless in the first and third quarters on the way to a 75-23 win in the opening game of the tournament at Oneida Baptist High School.

“Defensively, we were disciplined in our schemes, as well as played with effort and energy,” Harlan coach Tiffany Hamm said. “Defensive rebounding has been an issue at times this season, and we executed better in that phase. We are starting to communicate better on offense, which allows us to shoot the ball with a lot more confidence, so that has allowed us to have an increased field goal percentage as of late.”

Senior forward Mackenzie King was one of three Lady Dragons in double figures with 19 points. Junior guard Payeton Charles added 15 points and sophomore forward Natalee King came off the bench to contribute 13 points.”

Red Bird (1-5) was led by senior center Kara Wilson with eight points. Alyssa Gibson and Liberty Taylor chipped in with six points each.

Charles had four baskets in the opening quarter, while Mackenzie King had three and Whitney Wilson came off the bench for a 3-pointer and basket as Harlan raced to a 28-0 lead.

Mackenzie King added four basketss in the second quarter as Harlan’s lead grew to 50-13 by halftime.

The Lady Dragons outscored Red Bird 12-0 with the clock running throughout the third quarter, led by two baskets each from Brandi Haywood and Mackenzie King, to extend their advantage to 62-13.

The Harlan reserves, led by Angel Thompson, Alli Wynn, Wilson, Ella Morton and Natalee King, outscored the Lady Cards 13-10 in the final period.

Harlan advances to the semifinals on Thursday and will play Middlesboro in the opening game at 6 p.m. Middlesboro advanced with a win over Barbourville. The first round concludes on Tuesday with Oneida Baptist playing Lynn Camp at 6 p.m., followed by Williamsburg taking on Pineville at 7:30 p.m. in a showdown of two of the tournament favorites.

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Harlan 75, Red Bird 23

RED BIRD (1-5)

Alyssa Gibson 1 4-4 6, Liberty Taylor 2 0-0 6, Taylor Caldwell 0 1-2 1, Lexie Bowling 0 0-0 0, Kara Wilson 4 0-0 8, Macey Price 0 0-0 0, Mathania Vanigoma 0 0-0 0, Haley Short 0 0-0 0, Haley Jackson 0 0-0 0. Totals: 8 5-10 23.

HARLAN (7-7)

Payeton Charles 6 0-0 15, Noah Canady 2 3-3 7, Taylor Simpson 1 0-1 2, Mackenzie King 9 1-1 19, Brandi Haywood 3 0-0 6, Natalee King 6 1-6 13, Whitney Wilson 3 0-0 7, Katelyn Burkhart 0 0-0 0, Alli Thompson 1 0-0 2, Angel Wynn 0 2-2 2, Ella Morton 1 0-1 2, Makayla Sizemore 0 0-0 0. Totals: 32 7-14 75.

Harlan 28 22 12 13 — 75

Red Bird 0 13 0 10 — 23

3-point goals: Red Bird 2 (Taylor 2), Harlan 4 (Charles 3, Wilson 1).