[HDE]

Everybody played against Harlan County except Smith:

Lady Bears hold off Whitley's comeback to end skid
By JOHN HENSON
Harlan County Sports.com
Anthony Nolan had to feel a sense of deja vu as Whitley County cut a 15-point Harlan County lead to two in the final minute Wednesday with a 13-0 run. Nolan had seen this show before, twice in the past week to be exact, and both ended with one-point losses — to Corbin on Friday and Somerset on Saturday.
The Lady Bears were able to find a happy ending this time as Harlan County stopped its first losing streak of the season at two with a 39-36 win.
"I was really proud of the effort the last two games. We just didn't close like we needed to," Nolan said. "The main thing for us is get 100 percent next week and go into the tournament with confidence."
Senior forward Maria Johnson sparked the Whitley comeback with eight points in the run, including 3-pointers on two successive trips down the floor that pulled the Lady Colonels within two with 1:10 to play.
Whitley had a chance to take its first lead of the night after Kaitlyn Stittums missed at the free throw line, but Whitley's Taylor Dingess missed a 3-point attempt with 31 seconds left. Harlan County guards Lauren Lee and Brooklyn Massingill put the game away by hitting two free throws each before Johnson hit another trey at the buzzer for the final margin.
"The biggest reason was we had kids who passed up shots in the fourth quarter. We have to have kids willing to make plays. That's what we're lacking now," Nolan said. "They have some good shooters, and we didn't close out. We knew the Johnson girl could hit. All but one of theirs played tonight. I thought we played really good defense for three quarters. To hold them under 40, with the type of weapons and experience they have, is pretty good. We still have to do a better job of putting teams away. I thought tonight we found a way to gut it out."
Whitley County coach Larry Anderson entered the game with even bigger problems, playing without their top three players and four of their top six during a recent skid. Junior center Kandace Craig (hand) and senior guard Bethany Powers (knee) both came off the bench for their first action in a while, but senior guard Brandi Smith remains out until next week's 50th District Tournament due to illness. Sixth man Hallie Jones also returned from an injury and started in Smith's spot.
"It's been like coaching two or three different teams this year," Whitley County coach Larry Anderson said. "We got Bethany, Kandace and Hallie Jo back tonight, and I didn't know what to do with him. We had to change all our offense after they went down. I was awful the first half. The rotation was pathetic. I didn't know what to call offensively, and I had the wrong combinations in at times. We did a good job hanging on the first half until we got going the second half."
Massingill overcame a slow start to lead the 23-5 Lady Bears with 17 points.
Johnson scored 11 of her team-high 17 points in the fourth quarter to pace the 18-8 Lady Colonels.
Two baskets by senior center Sarah Evans, who missed the last two games with a sore hamstring, gave Harlan County an early 4-0 lead, but Whitley pulled even at 6-6 by the end of the period on baskets by Taylor Dingess and Sierra Feltner.
A 3-pointer by Maria Johnson gave Whitley its first lead at 9-8. Craig scored with 5:20 left in the half as Whitley led 11-10 before Lauren Lee ignited the 8-0 run with a 3-pointer. Stittums scored off a drive and Massingill buried a 3-pointer to help the Lady Bears take an 18-11 lead at halftime.
WIth the lead at four midway through the third quarter, Harlan County began to pull away. Massingill had three baskets, including a 3-pointer, in a 9-0 run to close the period, giving the Lady Bears a 31-18 advantage.
"We had a chance to win at the end, and that's all you can ask right now," Anderson said. "I agreed to come up here because we needed to make up the game, but also because we needed a game. It was good for us. I was pleased with what we did tonight. I thought it was a good start for us."
Anderson said the run of injuries and illness was the worst he's experienced in 31 years of coaching.
"I've never had this many impact players out at one time," he said. "We're hoping we get Brandi back Monday."
Harlan County closes its regular season schedule Friday at home against Knox Central. Whitley County plays at Bell County on Friday.
———
Freshman guard Lindsay Branson scored 11 points to lead the Harlan County junior varsity team to a 34-30 victory.
Becky Freeman and Lauren Smith added seven and six points, respectively. Bridgette Bennett and McKenzie Farley each scored four. Kaitlin Evans contributed two.
Lauren Elliott scored nine and Madison Centers tossed in seven to lead the 6-5 Lady Colonels. Johnna Dopel chipped in with five. Heather Partin, Sierra Feltner, Emily Vanderpool and Destiny Kinder added two each. Sherry Johnson scored one.
———
WHITLEY COUNTY (18-8)
Hallie Jones 1-2 0-0 2, Savanna Sizemore 0-1 0-0 0, Maria Johnson 6-9 0-0 17, Taylor Dingess 2-9 3-4 7, Sabrina SIzemore 0-0 0-0 0, Kandace Craig 2-4 0-0 4, Bethany Powers 0-2 0-0 0, Sierra Feltner 1-2 0-0 2, Madison Centers 2-2 0-0 4, Lauren Elliott 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 14-34 3-4 36.
HARLAN COUNTY (23-5)
Kaitlyn Stittums 1-6 0-1 2, Lauren Lee 2-3 2-2 7, Brooklyn Massingill 6-15 3-4 17, Madison Cornett 0-3 2-2 2, Sarah Evans 4-4 0-0 8, Bella Noe 0-3 0-0 0, Keisha Mimes 1-6 0-0 2, Shauntae Lewis 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 14-40 7-9 39.
Whitley County 6 5 7 18 — 36
Harlan County 6 12 13 8 — 39
3-point goals: Whitley County 5-16 (Johnson 5-8, Powers 0-1, Feltner 0-1, Dingess 0-6), Harlan County 3-12 (Massingill 2-7, Lee 1-1, Stittums 0-1, Cornett 0-1, Noe 0-2). Rebounds: Whitley County 10 (Jones 2, Craig 2, Feltner 2, Dingess 1, Savanna Sizemore 1, Sabrina Sizemore 1, Elliott 1), Harlan County 23 (Mimes 7, Lee 4, Cornett 4, Evans 4, Massingill 2, Stittums 1, Massingill 1). Turnovers: Whitley County 12, Harlan County 10. Fouled out: None.