BOBCATS DEFEAT OWLS IN EXCITING DISTRICT TOURNEY FINISH

A game that was intense and played with a high level of energy by both teams came down to the wire before Lee County was able to edge rival Owsley County 63-58 at Heber Dunaway Gymnasium in Beattyville on Tuesday. The victory propelled the Bobcats to the 14th regional tournament next week at the Breathitt Coliseum in Jackson. It is their first return to the regional tournament since 2011. It also moves them forward to Thursday's district championship game against Powell County, a 66-45 winner over Estill County in the evening's first game.

 

The game was close from start to finish, with the exception of a six-point lead by the Owls at one time and a nine-point lead by the Bobcats in the fourth quarter. Both leads were quickly erased, however, within a short time, and the contest continued to be a grinder and close.

 

The Owls led 10-9 after one quarter and 23-21 at the half. They had been successful at limiting Lee's 39-point-per-game star player, Corey Flinchum, to 11 first-half points, far below his usual halftime average. The game remained close in the third quarter, and Lee held a 38-36 lead heading into the final quarter. In the last quarter, the Bobcats outscored the Owls 26-22 and finally managed a 63-58 victory. The Owls actually had a chance to tie with a potential made 3-pointer with 8 seconds remaining, but Flinchum stole the ball and was intentionally fouled. He nailed the two free throws to put his team up by 5 with only 2 seconds left on the clock, basically ending the game.

 

The Owls were led in scoring by Keegan Herald with 19 points. Jarred Napier scored 14 points, Daniel Caudell 9, Jordan McCoy 7, Chase Pryse 6, and Bryson Bowling 3.

 

The Bobcats' Corey Flinchum nearly reached his average as he came alive in the second half with 26 points to finish the game with 37. Brent Davis added 9 points, Carter Begley 6, Jarad Lucas 6, Chris Thompson 2, and Mason Howard had 2.

 

Both teams gave it their all. Countless times, numerous players were scrambling on the floor for loose basketballs. Rebound battles were intense as well. And the fans from both sides of the court were as into the game as a border rivalry such as this one would entail.

 

The game prior to the Owsley-Lee game, between Powell County and Estill County (another border rivalry), was not the edge-of-your-seat type game that the Owls and Bobcats had. They had three wins over the Engineers before the tournament, one in the 2A State Tournament and two in the regular season. All were by substantial margins. The outcome on Tuesday was the same result and earned the Pirates their fourth double-digit victory over the Engineers this season. The final score was 66-45. Powell and Lee will play the district championship game on Thursday.

 

Powell did most of their damage with the threesome of Conner Morguson (20 points), Riley Faulkner (19 points), and Bryson Edwards (13 points). The Pirates also controlled the boards by a huge amount. Estill was led by sophomore guard Hunter Bingham with 19 points.

 

Before the game, Powell was presented with the season district award, a plaque detailing their accomplishment, which was an undefeated 6-0 record. In addition, a season district All-Tournament Team was announced. Players named were Bryson Edwards, Conner Morguson, Tucker Ramsey, and Riley Faulkner of Powell County, Keegan Herald, Jordan McCoy, and Chase Pryse of Owsley County, Jarad Lucas and Corey Flinchum of Lee County, and Hunter Bingham and Luke Niece of Estill County.