CORBIN — Two streaks were on the line when Corbin and South Laurel faced-off against each other in the semifinals of Tuesday’s 50th District Boys’ Basketball Tournament.
Tony Pietrowski’s Corbin Redhounds were looking to extend their region tournament appearance streak to 22 years while Jeff Davis’ Cardinals had hopes of making it to the region tournament for the 11th consecutive season.
In the end, the Redhounds kept their streak alive, defeating the Cardinals for the third time this season, 61-40.
“Can’t say enough great things about my kids tonight,” Pietrowski said. “We felt like we had a good game plan but to watch them execute and do so with such great effort was special! I’m proud of all of them.
“Clay Akins, Trey Person, Lucas and Salmons all made some winning plays for us tonight,” he added. “They were ultimately the difference in the game With the amount of attention they showed Evan and Eli it was nice to see the shine. Thought Evan and Eli did great late. Dictating pace and finishing when needed.
“We looked like the team I think we can be,”Pietrowski continued. “Pumped to be headed back to the region. Time to focus in on Whitley and see if we can figure out a way to give them a game Friday night.”
The last time Corbin missed out on playing in the 13th Region Tournament was 2004. The Redhounds possess the longest current streak with North Laurel’s current streak of 11 ranking second. Clay County (1978-2017) holds the record, reaching the 13th Region Tournament 40 consecutive seasons.
“Really proud of these seniors,” Davis said. “They have worked extremely hard and been great leaders and role models for our program. Proud of how hard our guys played and worked, just had somethings not go our way and out of our control. Unfortunately, that has been the thing all year in these games.”
On Tuesday, Corbin managed to build a 13-8 lead in the first quarter, and a 28-15 edge at halftime. The Redhounds entered the fourth quarter with a 40-31 advantage.
Trey Person came up huge for Corbin, scoring 20 points while Clay Akins had 12 points, Evan Ellis scored 11 points, and Eli Pietrowski finished with nine points.
Garrison Brown and Kaden Taylor led the Cardinals with eight points apiece.
The win improved Corbin to 14-13 while South Laurel (14-15) finishes with a losing record for the first time since the 2012-13 season.
