Hancock County Hornets beat Breck to earn #1 seed

The Hornets secured the #1 seed for the upcoming 11th District tournament with a 63-53 win over Breckinridge County at Harned Friday night.

“That was our goal all year long, to get that #1 seed, and it was tough,” HCHS coach Mike Orr said.

Hancock County (15-11) took the early lead with made baskets by four starters including a “3” by Luke Brown. The Fighting Tigers regrouped and ended up winning the first quarter when big man Hunter Barr led Breck to a 10-9 advantage.

Evan Ferry took over in the second period. The point guard hit from beyond the arc and on smooth drives to the basket. Devyn Powers converted an “and-1” and the score was tied at 22-22 at halftime.

“Evan was in attack mode tonight and we have to have that,” Orr said.

Cole Dixon was the man for the Hornets in the third frame. The senior utilized hit speed and athleticism on multiple drives to the rim. He added a 3-point basket, as did Ferry, and Powers scored twice as the Hornets took a two point lead into the final quarter.

Powers made good on a conventional 3-point play and Hancock County pushed the lead to 10 points, but Breck quickly battled back.

Ferry scored twice and Dixon converted a jump shot and made two from the charity stripe to help hold off the Tigers.

Kaleb Keown was in foul trouble for much of the contest and his fourth infraction left him on the bench midway through the final frame. Brown, at about 5-foot-10, found himself guarding the 6-foot-7 Barr. Brown battled to keep Barr out of the paint and eventually drew an offensive foul against Breck’s star player. Brown reacted with a muscle flex then capped off a series of events with a 3-point basket that brought the Hornet bench to its feet.

“Luke was huge for us,” the coach said.

Another “and-1” by Powers in the final seconds put the cherry on top of a memorable Hornet victory over its oldest rival.

“We wanted this one! And maybe the play of the game, which  probably nobody realized, was when Jordan Payne tipped a rebound out to us and we converted. It was a one-point game at the time and that play gave us the separation we needed. But it took all of them to get this done and I’m proud of ‘em.” Orr said.

It was another incredible shooting night for Hancock County as the team made 66.7% of all field goal attempts for the game. Breck County shot 40% from the field.

Ferry led all scorers with 18 points and added three assists. Dixon had 17 points, with six rebounds and two assists, Powers had 15 points, three boards and two steals, Brown had 10 points and two boards, and Keown had three points and four rebounds. Payne and Max Gray had one board each.

Barr led BCHS with 17 points.

Henderson County

A big offensive first half by Henderson County led to a 75-57 win for the Colonels  over the Hornets on Monday at Henderson.

The Colonels scored 20 points in each of the first two quarters the Hornets trailed by 21 points at intermission.

Hancock County fought back with 3’s by Ferry, Brown and Keown in the third but the Hornets could not close the gap. Powers and Ferry both hit was downtown in the fourth and Keown scored eight points over the final eight minutes to help HCHS win the final frame 22-18.

The Colonels shot 63% from the field for the game.

Ferry hit four 3’s and scored 24 points to lead the Hornets, while dishing out five assists. Keown had 11 points, eight boards and two assists, Powers had nine points and two boards, Brown had seven points and four assists, and Dixon had six points, two assists and three steals.

Lacon McKinney led Henderson with 23 points.

Cloverport

The Hornets took care of business early during a 61-19 win at Cloverport on Wednesday, Feb. 8.

Keown and Powers lit it up in the first quarter and Ferry, Dixon and Brown did the same in the second. The result was a 33-16 halftime lead for Hancock County.

Brown scored twice during the third frame while Keown was 6 of 6 from the foul line. The Hornet defense held the Aces to just two points in the period and the outcome was decided early.

Gray and Payne each hit a “3” during a fourth quarter run.

Hancock shot 39% from the field and made 12 of 13 from the line. Cloverport shot 18% and made 5 of 10 from the stripe.

Keown scored 19 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Ferry had 10 points, five boards and three assists, Brown had nine points and two boards, Powers had seven points, three boards, two assists and three steals, Dixon had four points, 13 rebounds and two steals, Alex Madden had four points and three boards, Gray and Payne had three points each, and Dylan Morris had two points and two boards.

Cole Weatherholt led Cloverport with 11 points. Dorcey Emery had six and Caydin Greenwood two.

By Steve Wimmer