Paintsville outscored Johnson Central 13-2 in the second overtime period to score an 84-73 win in the 57th District tournament championship game played at Magoffin County on Friday night.
The Tigers, now 12-8, had lost both regular season games to the Golden Eagles (19-3).
Braxton Tharp poured in a game-high 31 points and Connor Fugate followed with 20. Jaxon Watts net 11 and Colby Fugate added 10. Baron Ratliff added eight.
Cory VanHoose paced the Golden Eagles with 27 points and Isaiah May followed with 26.
The Tigers will face Lawrence County (11-10) in the 15th Region tournament on March 23. Game time is 8:15 pm.
The Golden Eagles will tangle with East Ridge (15-8) at 6:30 pm on March 22.
At Salyersville
(57th District championship)
SCORE BY QUARTERS:
PV (12-8)…..14 8 17 17 (15) (13) – 84
JC (19-3)……12 17 9 18 (15) ( 2) – 73
Scoring:
Paintsville (84) – Braxton Tharp 8(1) 12-14 31; Colby Fugate 5 0-0 10; Jaxon Watts 3(1) 2-3 11; Baron Ratliff 3 2-6 8; Ryan Gibson 1 0-0 2; Rex Castle 1 2-2 4; and Connor Fugate 5(1) 7-7 20. Totals: 26(3) 23-32 84.
Johnson Central (19-3) – Ryleh McKenzie 1(1) 2-2 7; Isaiah May 1(6) 6-8 26; Grant Rice 1 1-2 3; Cory VanHoose 10(1) 4-4 27; John King 3 0-1 6; Connor Lemaster 0(1) 0-0 3; and Kamen Slone 0 1-2 1. Totals: 16(9) 14-19 73.
Next up: Paintsville (12-8) vs Lawrence County (11-10), 15th Region tournament, 8:15 pm, Mar. 23; Johnson Central (19-3) vs. East Ridge (15-8), 15th Region tournament, 6:30 pm, Mar. 22.
