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By John Henson

Contributing Writer

Over 14 minutes into Saturday’s championship game of the WYMT Mountain Classic at Knott Central, the Perry Central Commodores were shooting 67 percent (16 of 24) and had a 10-point lead over Harlan County.

When the Commodores finally cooled off, Trent Noah and the Black Bears were ready to take control. Noah set a tournament record with 108 points in the three games to earn Most Valuable Player honors. He scored 38 in the championship game to lead the Bears to an 81-63 victory to give HCHS and the county school district its first WYMT title in the 37-year history of the tournament.

“He definitely has the capability to do that. Trent played well, and I felt all six who got in played well,” Harlan County coach Kyle Jones said. “I thought Reggie (Cottrell) got on the boards the second half. Credit to Maddox (Huff) because we put him on (Trayton) Woods the second half and guarded him real well.”

“You have to expect that. We were expecting it a lot sooner than that,” Perry Central coach Shannon Hoskins said of Noah’s shooting in the second half. “He’s a heck of a player. (Maddox) Huff is a heck of a player also, and they have those shooters around them. They’re a great team.”

The tone for the second half was established on Perry’s opening possession with three shots and three misses, leading to a three-of-14 quarter.

“We were shooting the ball better than we do on most nights. We were making some hard shots,” Hoskins said of the Commodores’ first-half shooting. “I thought our pace of play was right where we wanted it to be. The second half we came out; I don’t know if we were dead-legged or not, but we didn’t have the same fire and same rhythm. With them and their size, if you don’t have that rhythm and firing like that you’re in trouble.”

“We decided at halftime that we needed to speed up the tempo a little bit. We felt like it might change the momentum. Defensively, that’s what turned the game around,” Jones said. “We were back on our heels the first half, and they were making tough shots. They are an experienced team, too. I was really happy with our effort the second half. I thought defensively we were phenomenal the third and fourth quarters.”

Noah hit four straight shots to start the second half and the Bears connected on eight of 13 while going on a 23-4 run after Carter Castle extended Perry’s lead to five points.

Cottrell, who finished with 16 points, hit three of five shots in the fourth quarter. Noah had three baskets in the quarter and Jaycee Carter added two as the Bears built their lead to as many as 19 points.

Trayton Woods scored 19 to lead the Commodores. Kizer Slone and Tyson Neace added 14 and 10 points, respectively.

Harlan broke the tournament drought for Harlan County teams last season with a win over Perry Central in the finals. The Bears made it two in a row for county teams and became the first squad in the county school district to win the tournament.

“You think about all the teams that played in this before consolidation and there were a lot of good teams. A lot of good Harlan County High School teams played in it,” Jones said. “It’s a credit to the kids. They didn’t get rattled. I hope that shows some maturity.”

The Commodores hit nine of 13 shots in the opening quarter, including five 3-pointers, to take a 23-22 lead. Rydge Beverly led the way with three baskets, while Woods, Carter Castle and Neace added two each.

Huff and Noah had two baskets each for the Bears, who hit seven of 15 shots in the period.

Woods added two more 3s in the second quarter, while Landon Miller came off the bench to add one as the Perry lead reached 10, at 39-29, with 3:10 left in the half. Brody Napier started the HC comeback with a 3 from the corner, then Noah scored the final six points of the half to cut the deficit to 41-38 at halftime. Huff, who finished with 13 points, hit all three of his shots in the second period as the Bears rallied.

Harlan County (5-0) will travel to South Laurel on Tuesday. Perry Central (3-1) plays at Buckhorn on Tuesday.

Noah takes over in 54-point explosion as Bears down Martin to earn a spot in WYMT finals

In a 37-point win Monday over Letcher Central in the opening round of the WYMT Mountain Classic, the Harlan County Black Bears didn’t need a superhero effort from all-state guard Trent Noah, who was one of four Bears in double figures with 14 points.

When defending 15th Region champ Martin County came out red hot in the semifinals on Friday, it soon became apparent that the Bears needed something extra from their star. Noah found a phone booth after the first quarter and did his best Superman impression in a 54-point, 18-rebound night as HCHS rolled into the finals with an 86-76 victory. Noah hit seven of 10 shots in the second period as Harlan County overcame an early deficit to take a 40-37 halftime lead.

“Letcher really focused on me the other night, and I have confidence in my teammates to let them do their thing,” Noah said. “Tonight they were guarding them, and I felt my teammates needed me to get a few buckets, and I felt like I did.”

“I think everybody knows Trent can do that, and he picked a good time tonight,” Harlan County coach Kyle Jones said. “Martin County is a really talented team with a lot of offensive weapons. They were in the state tournament last year and the state All ‘A’ Classic with four starters back. It was a very tough game for us.”

Martin County (2-2) led by as many as five points in the second quarter as junior guard Luke Hale scored 13 of his 33 points in the period.

Senior guard Dray Duff and senior forward Brayden McKenzie added 15 and 10 points, respectively.

Harlan County (4-0) got 12 points from senior forward Caleb Johnson, who hit two clutch 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Sophomore guard Reggie Cottrell added eight points and came up with a couple of crucial blocks in the closing minutes.

“We changed our defense up in the second quarter and put a little pressure on them. Maddox (Huff) and Reggie got some hands on passes and got some easy buckets and got us going,” Jones said. “It seemed every time we got a lead, they would hit a big shot, and good teams do that.”

Noah hit eight of 11 shots in the third quarter as the Bears’ lead grew to 69-57.

Martin fought back to within five midway through the fourth quarter as the Bears struggled against the Martin press, turning the ball over seven times in the period.

“It was physical, and we have to do a better job of taking care of basketball. That’s something we’ll get better at as the season goes on,” Jones said.

Johnson’s third 3-pointer with 3:30 left pushed the HCHS lead back to eight; Noah had a basket and four free throws to put the game away and earn the Bears a spot in Saturday’s championship game against Perry Central.