CORBIN — Monday’s crosstown showdown in the 13th Region Boys’ Tournament title game lived up to its hype, and then some.
Both North Laurel and South Laurel gave their all for 36 minutes but in the end, the Jaguars did just enough to pull off a 49-44 win, capturing their first region championship since 2023, and fourth overall (2012, ‘22, ‘23 and ‘25).
“ “This team never quit through the whole season,” North Laurel coach Nate Valentine said. “We had a lot of ups and downs, but we played a really tough schedule again, like always, and we lost six games where we had to lead in the last 30 seconds. I told them I had a ton of confidence in them, but they keep giving away the last 30 seconds, so I knew we were better than a lot of people thought we were and then we went and we got some really good road wins.
“We had some changes in our mindset and we’ve been really good, I mean starting with OBI game,” he added. “I’m happy these guys stuck together and they continued to fight and they didn’t panic. They don’t get too excited— too high or too low. They’re a special group and could have folded today, but didn’t.”
Cooper Elza came up big win his team needed him most, scoring 10 of North Laurel’s final 15 points, including scoring all six of the Jaguars’ points in overtime. He finished with a game-high 15 points, five assists, and two steals.
“Cooper was clutch tonight,” Valentine said. “Dude has ice water in his veins. I was 100 percent sure he was going to make them (free throws.”
The tournament’s Most Valuable Player, Reece Davidson, capped off an impressive three games, finishing with 13 points, five rebounds, two steals, and one assist while turning in a stellar defensive effort, too.
“Reece is a great player,” Valentine said. “He gets beat up every night. I wish that would change but he just plays through it, like he could’ve quit a lot of times, but you know, he keeps battling. He came up big for us again tonight.”
Jordan Rawlings hit key shots from the outside throughout the game, finishing with 13 points, and three 3-pointers, and one steal.
RJ Noble had three points, two steals and two assists while Kole Jervis finished with three points and five assists. Corey Cunagin added two points.
North Laurel (22-10) shot 17-of-35 from the floor, and 8-of-16 from 3-point range while forcing 14 turnovers.
South Laurel finished the season with a 25-9 record while shooting 19-of-38 from the floor, including a 5-of-11 from 3-point range. The Cardinals out-rebounded North Laurel, 18-17.
Colton Rawlings scored 14 points and finished with four rebounds while Joshua Steele and Max Fullmer added eight points apiece. Jordan Mabe added seven points while Kaiden McQueen finished with four points, Garrison Brown finished with three points.
“Congrats to North Laurel on a good game and winning the region,” South Laurel coach Jeff Davis said. “They absolutely deserve it.
“I’m proud of our team,” he added. “We just came up short and didn’t play well and that’s a credit to North. These seniors have been through a lot over the last two years and how they have handled it is a testament to their resiliency. I’m proud of them and we are going to miss them.”
The lead changed hands five times in the first quarter with Colton Rawlings catching fire and drilling two 3-pointers, one right before the end of the quarter, to give South Laurel a 16-11 lead.
Steele and Mabe had four points for the Cardinals while Fullmer added two points.
Jordan Rawlings scored five points in the opening period for North Laurel while Davidson chipped in four points.
The Jaguars opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer to make the score, 16-14, but a basket by Steele ignited a 6-0 run, increasing the Cardinals advantage to 22-14 with 4:51 left in the first half.
North Laurel followed with a run of its own, as Elza scored five straight points while Jordan Rawlings followed with a basket, cutting his team’s deficit to 24-21 at halftime.
South Laurel shot an efficient 11-of-18 from the floor in the first half, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range. The Cardinals out-rebounded the Jaguars, 9-8.
Balanced scoring led the way for South Laurel in the first half with Steele and Colton Rawlings scoring six points apiece while Mabe, McQueen and Fullmer adding four points apiece.
North Laurel shot 9-of-20 from the floor, and 3-of-10 from behind the arc.
Davidson and Jordan Rawlings had seven points apiece while Elza had five points and Noble scored two points.
The two teams continued to take each others best punch in the third quarter. Baskets by Steele and Colton Rawlings pushed South Laurel’s lead to 28-21.
North Laurel responded with 3-pointers by Jervis and Jordan Rawlings to make the score, 28-27, with 5:10 remaining in the quarter.
A 3-pointer by Colton Rawlings and a basket by Fullmer increased the Cardinals’ lead to 33-27 at the 3:16 mark.
But the Jaguars responded with a 8-0 run that saw them take a 35-33 edge after a basket by Noble at the 1:08 mark.
Mabe’s basket with under a minute to go, tied the game at 35 apiece going into the fourth quarter.
A basket by Fullmer and a 3-pointer by Garrison Brown two minutes into the final period, allowed South Laurel to a regain a 40-37 advantage.
Davidson followed with a 3-pointer to tie the game at 40 apiece while another 3-pointer by Colton Rawlings gave South Laurel a 43-40 advantage with 4:24 left in regulation.
But a free throw by Noble and a layup by Elza tied the game at 43 apiece with 2:56 left as both teams failed to score on multiple possessions, sending the game into overtime.
Elza took over, coming up clutch in the extra period, hitting all six of his free throw attempts to seal the five point win for the Jaguars.
