Time for me to reflect on last year’s high school basketball moments

Larry Winterland

With high school basketball season rapidly coming up, I thought that I would look back at my first season doing play-by-play for South Laurel and share my top 10 moments.

When I looked back and reflected on last season, there were so many moments that stood out, but I had to choose 10.

So here they are.

No. 10 came on Jan. 10 when both the Lady Cards and Cardinals played a doubleheader in two different towns. The Lady Cards played early in Corbin in the Lady Redhounds Shootout. The Lady Cards won 61-47, and then it was up I-75 and out I-64 for the night cap.

Steve Wright’s team played Madisonville-North Hopkins at Montgomery County. As I drove fast, the game before went into overtime, allowing me to catch the opening tip against UK’s Jon Hood. The Cardinals won the game, 77-59.

No. 9 came on Dec. 16 and it had the Cards and Redhounds playing for the first of five times, but the reason this game stood out for me was because it gave me my first taste of the South Laurel/Corbin rivalry. Corbin won the basketball game, 67-57, to take an early lead in the district standings.

No. 8 comes from the Laurel County Hoop Fest on Jan. 22. The Lady Cards hosted Marshall County and won 59-47. Jessica Dean put on a scoring display with 23 points in the win.

No. 7 was the North Laurel/South Laurel game on Dec. 12. Just like back on Dec. 16 when Corbin and South met for the first time, this was my first taste of the North-South rivalry. Although the final score was, 72-56, the game played out much closer than that on the court. The Cardinals were led by Zac Smith’s 29 points and 12 rebounds while Josh Siedel countered with 19 points. The win put the Cardinals’ record at 3-0.

No. 6 came down in Williamsburg on Jan. 12. This game was close to the end, but South Laurel wound up winning, 70-68. Matt St. John came close to a state record when he swatted 14 Yellow Jacket shots away.

The No. 5 moment came from Lexington when the Lady Cards traveled to play Paul Dunbar on Feb. 12. This was a rematch of the Lady Pirate Holiday Classic when Paul Dunbar defeated the Lady Cards, 46-35. The Lady Bulldogs were ranked No. 10 in the state and it took a late three-point basket by Jessica Dean to send it to overtime. On the road, the Lady Cards had the ball with seconds remaining when the unlikely hero for the night, Chelsea Anders, scored her only two of the night to give the South Laurel the upset win, 53-51.

No. 4 came on Feb. 20. It was a senior night doubleheader that put Rockcastle County against South Laurel. First, the Lady Cards were playing the No. 10 Lady Rockets. This game went back and forth until the end. Led by Morgan Johnson’s 14 points, the Lady Cards were able to pull off the 48-44 upset of Rockcastle County and end senior Porsha Justice’s home career with a win. The boys game wasn’t as competitive. The Cardinals scored 18 of the last 20 points to end the first half and cruise to a senior night win 87-64. The rarely-used Wes Chandler got the start and jump started the crowd when he scored four points in the contest. Wes Dean finished his home career with 12 points and Zac Smith ended up with a game-high 21 points.

The No. 3 moment came on Feb. 6 when the Cardinals traveled to Clay County. The Cards won the game, 58-54, but my partner that night was Ollie Hall. Despite the technical problems we had, I can say that it was great to work with Ollie. This is coming from a radio guy and some may think, “Wow, this is the No. 3 game on your list?” Well, Ollie is a broadcast legend and has covered many basketball and football games on the high school level. All season long, Ollie was my go-to guy. So that game in Clay County stood out because it was a homecoming for Ollie, and I got to work with him. They say you know greatness when it’s defined by one name. Need I say more? I worked with Ollie.

No. 2 on the list comes back down in Williamsburg on Feb. 26. The Lady Cards won the district title by defeating Corbin, 41-26. It was great to see the Lady Cards battle all season long and get a district championship. The road wasn’t easy, as no road is, but that night the Lady Cards played a complete game.

No. 1 on the list comes from Bell County on March 10. It was the region championship between South Laurel and Corbin. It marked the fifth time those two teams played that season. The gym was packed out like everyone said it would be.