Colonels fall to John Hardin in Region Tournament

End of the road

Colonels fall to John Hardin in Region Tournament

Rayna Glass

The Colonels entered the region tournament Wednesday, February 28 at Marion County with a Fifth Region giant standing before them, John Hardin.
Caverna entered the tournament 13-16, the runner-up of the 18^th district. The Bulldogs of John Hardin (26-7) defeated Central Hardin to top the 17^th District, sitting second in regular season standings for the region behind LaRue County.

From the tip John Hardin was quick to put points on the board, while the Colonels were scoreless until 5:51 left to play in the first quarter when Jobby Howard stepped up the foul line and knocked down the first of the Colonels 53 points.

With each advance the Colonels made they were outsized, leading them to drive the ball inside often hoping for a foul The first successful shot of a Colonel drive came around the two minute mark from Jobby Howard to add to a bucket from Isaiah Boles and a three pointer off an offensive rebound from Sebastian Howard. By the end of the first quarter the Colonels trailed 24-12.

John Hardin opened the second quarter with a loud statement in a successful dunk. As the clocked clicked closer on to halftime, the Colonels’ shot attempts continued to run cold, and the size of John Hardin continued to gain them second chance points on the offensive side. Going to the locker room at the half, John Hardin had upped their lead 51-22.

The third quarter found Jobby Howard as the first to score, but once again offensive rebounds made a difference for John Hardin who continued to increase their lead. With eight minutes left to play the Bulldogs controlled the game 75-31 with a running clock.

It can not be said of the Colonels however that they played without fight. As five seniors took to the court for the final minutes, each possession they were working to make it count, attempting to trap and steal to convert to points. Jobby scored 11 of his points in the fourth.

The Colonels fell 88-53 to the Bulldogs who advanced to play Campbellsville Monday, March 5.

The loss was the end of the season for Caverna and the end of the road of high school basketball for six seniors- Isaiah Boles, Sincere Page, Jobby Howard, Sebastian Howard, Anthony Lindner, and Nick Gunn.

Jobby Howard made headlines throughout the season across the state with his ability to score, shattering the school’s record for most points in one game the night he put up 65 over Adair County. He sits fifth among the leading scorers in the state this year averaging 30.5 points per game in 29 games.

In other region action, Campbellsville defeated Bardstown 57-55, LaRue County defeated Bethlehem 66-32, and Adair County took down Central Hardin 64-52. Monday evening LaRue County and Adair County faced off to see who would compete for the championship against the winner of John Hardin and Campbellsville.

In girls fifth region action both teams representing te 18^th District went out in the first round. Green County fell 56-64 to John Hardin, and LaRue County lost 57-35 against Elizabethtown.