Seniors Noah Earlywine and Nash Wilson deliver as Colonels outlast Scott County in a 2OT classic
The County will be on the road for three games this week, including a trip to George Rogers Clark and a crosstown showdown at Paris
IVAN K. RICE I doctorofsports@aol.com
PARIS, KY – The Bourbon County Colonels suffered a tough loss to Berea in the Tim Short Automotive Classic at Clark County, which came a week after defeating Berea at the Railroad Classic in Irvine. But instead of letting that loss get to them, Coach Allen Martin’s team, thanks to a new few pieces, regrouped and finished off last week with two straight wins, one over Louisville Doss and another huge victory against tradition rich Scott County.
The victories couldn’t have come at a better time for Bourbon considering their schedule for this week will see them make the journey over to Winchester to tangle with the 10th Region’s top ranked team, the George Rogers Clark Cardinals in a key district matchup. They will end the week on Saturday with a short drive over to crosstown rival Paris, in another crucial district game that will have some extra flare to this rivalry because of the off season movements on both sides. Sandwiched between those two games will be a clash at Highlands Latin on Friday.
TOP COLONEL – Noah Earlywine, who pulled down his 500th career rebound against Scott County, continues to run the show for the Colonels, and when he goes, they go. With several new pieces stepping up around him, Allen Martin’s squad has become even more dangerous.
“Going into the game (Scott County) we knew we were capable of competing and winning against good teams,” said Colonel coach Allen Martin. “I felt like we needed a win like this to help our confidence going into the GRC/Paris games, because for the past two decades or so, GRC has dominated this rivalry and that sort of becomes a psychological barrier that doesn’t allow you to play at full tilt. Our hope is wins like this get our guys to believe in themselves. Two district games this week are coming up and getting 4 of our last 5 is good momentum heading into it.”
Bourbon County 72, Scott County 65 (Double Overtime)
Bourbon County opened strong when sophomore Malachi Buchanan drilled a three to give the Colonels (9-6) the early edge. Scott County (8-5), coached by former UK “Unforgettable” Sean Woods, answered with a barrage of threes that fueled a 13-2 run, helping the Cardinals take a 15-8 lead after one quarter.
Back‑to‑back triples from sophomore Parker Sanders stretched Scott’s advantage to 21-8 at the 6:22 mark of the second. Bourbon refused to fold. A baseline jumper from senior Noah Earlywine, followed by a three from junior Dailyn Fields, trimmed the deficit to 21-13. Scott briefly pushed the margin back to 12 at 25-13 after four straight made free throws, but the Colonels closed the half with an 11-0 surge to pull within one, 25-24. Buchanan and senior Nash Wilson, who controlled the paint all night, powered the run.
A Wilson free throw and Buchanan’s straightaway three extended the burst to 15-0 and gave Bourbon a 28-25 lead two minutes into the third. Scott responded behind seniors Jeremiah Stiefel and Montae Washburn, using a 9-2 spurt to reclaim a 34-30 advantage midway through the period. Junior Zarion Snowden’s layup, five points from Earlywine, and a Wilson bucket to end the quarter sent the Colonels into the fourth up 39-37.
Scott regained the lead at 45-41 on threes from Sanders and scoring from senior Caelin Hunter, but Bourbon countered with a decisive 14-5 run to go ahead 55-50 with under a minute left. The momentum swung on a deep Earlywine three from near the BC logo, an Earlywine steal and layup, and Wilson’s continued dominance inside.
Sanders buried another three and Hunter knocked down a jumper to tie the game at 55. Snowden’s layup put Bourbon back in front 57-55, but the Cardinals forced overtime after Earlywine’s last‑second three came up short.
It took two extra periods to finish
The first overtime was a grind, with both teams trading blows and matching each other shot for shot. Each side scored six points in the frame, leaving the game knotted at 61‑61. Scott County had a look to win it at the horn, but a last‑second three‑point attempt didn’t fall, sending the hotly contested battle into a second overtime.
Snowden’s free throw and a Wilson bucket pushed Bourbon County ahead 64‑61 to open the second extra session. A Sanders three tied it at 64‑64, but Wilson, who delivered in every big moment, answered with four straight points to put the Colonels in front to stay at 68‑64. Martin’s squad outscored the Cardinals 11‑4 in the period, with Wilson accounting for six of those points, as Bourbon finally pulled away for the victory.
DOMINATED THE PAINT – Nash Wilson, shown here in an earlier game this season against Montgomery County, came up big for the Colonels during their victory over visiting Scott County last week inside Russ Day Gym.
“Scott County plays great defense and takes good shots, so your margins of error are low,” Martin said. “Our focus was minimizing turnovers and making sure we took quality shots. We struggled on the turnover side (committed 18 miscues) of that but were able to make enough big plays to overcome them.”
Martin added that several players stepped up, Wilson and Earlywine, of course, but also junior Quinton Rice, Snowden, Buchanan, Fields, and seniors Shayne Bowling and Myles Heilig-Lee.
“Nash and Noah did their thing. Malachi had one of his best games of the year. Dailyn and Zarion were able to give us some defense and downhill drives in crucial moments. Quinton didn’t score but was locked in on the defensive end and always made the right pass at the right time (5 assists) to get the shot we needed. I inadvertently may have robbed him of a game‑winner in regulation as he broke open in transition when I was taking our final timeout. Myles was a dawg on defense and energized us every time he stepped on the floor, and Shayne came in and bodied some people.”
“Everyone just played their role and did positive things to help us get the win.”
Earlywine paced the Colonels with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 blocked shots, while pulling down his 500th career rebound. Wilson delivered a powerful double‑double, finishing with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Buchanan added 13 points, while Snowden contributed 9 points and 4 boards. Fields turned in an all‑around effort with 8 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. Heilig‑Lee closed out the scoring with 2 points.
Sanders led the Cardinals with 18 points. Stiefel added 16, and Washburn finished with 11 to round out their double‑digit scorers.
Earlywine, Wilson lead Colonels past Doss in 61-42 victory
Noah Earlywine filled the stat sheet with 15 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals, while Nash Wilson added 14 points on an efficient 7‑of‑9 shooting performance as the Colonels handled visiting Louisville Doss, 61-42, the night before their double‑overtime win over Scott County.
Bourbon led 13-9 after the opening quarter and stretched the margin to 29-13 by halftime, locking down the Dragons’ (2-10) offense while Earlywine and Wilson combined for 10 first half points.
BIG WEEK AHEAD – Coach Allen Martin’s Colonels, winners of four of their last five, will hit the road for two crucial district matchups this week against George Rogers Clark and crosstown rival Paris.
The Colonels extended their advantage to 44-25 after three quarters, with six different players scoring in the period and Malachi Buchanan leading the way with four points.
The teams played even at 17-17 over the final eight minutes, but the outcome was never in doubt as Bourbon controlled the game from start to finish, leaving Russ Day Gym with a comfortable 19‑point victory.
Quinton Rice added 9 points and 3 assists. Buchanan, Shayne Bowling, and Zarion Snowden each scored 6 points, with Snowden also grabbing 6 rebounds. Dailyn Fields closed out the scoring with 5 points and 7 assists.
ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY: WILL JONES – 10thRegion.com
