Your GRC Cardinals have claimed the 10th Region Championship title for the third year in a row!

Last night the Cards were able to knock off the Bracken County Polar Bears, winning 80-45.

With the victory, the Cards move to 33-1 on the season, extend their winning streak to 27 games in a row, and punch their ticket to Rupp. 

It didn’t take long for GRC to establish a lead, jumping out to a 7-0 lead to force Bracken County to use an early timeout. 

Out of the timeout the Cards continued their intensity, making the scoreboard read 13-0. 

The Polar Bears’ first basket didn’t come till the 3:30 mark where they were then able to go on a little run of their own.

Bracken County hit a couple of threes to go on a 10-3 run to end the opening quarter, cutting the GRC lead to 7. 

The Cards slowly extended their lead in the second quarter to 9 just after the six-minute mark. 

The Cardinals defense was spectacular, again, only allowing 18 points in the first half; Coach Cook was extremely pleased with that. 

“I thought defensively we were fantastic,” Cook told WWKY Radio. “For me that’s what wins this time of year – going through the game plan and making sure you control your emotions correctly where you guard and are disciplined enough to do what you’re supposed to do, but defensively I thought we were fantastic.” 

During the final few minutes of the half, sophomore Reshaun Hampton drilled a three to increase the Cardinal lead to 15, which they maintained at the break with a score of 33-18. 

Out of halftime Bracken County was able to get back-to-back baskets to cut the lead to 10. 

That would be as close as it would get the rest of the night though, as the Cards extended it back to 15 with just over five minutes to go in the third. 

Hampton was able to grow the lead to 18 after he knocked down another three. Then it was Jerone Morton who hit a three and the Cards found themselves up 22 and never looked back. 

Bracken County couldn’t generate any offensive on the overwhelming Cardinal defense and trailed 54-29 headed into the final quarter. 

GRC was able to grow their lead in the fourth quarter, scoring 26 points in the quarter, almost half of them at the free throw line. 

Free throws could be big for this team headed into the state tournament and Coach Cook thinks it’s his best free throw shooting team yet. 

Not only is he proud of the way his team shot the ball at the charity stripe, he loved the way they kept their composure.  

“Our guys executed; this is the best free throw shooting team I’ve had, so with our guys stepping in making free throws for us it’s just an advantage,” explained Cook. “I thought we showed some maturity. There was time where we could have lost our composure but teammates stepped in and helped our guys get through it.” 

The Cards were 23-25 from the free throw line and only helped them add on to their already large lead. 

A Morton three at the three-minute mark put the Cardinals up 71-39 in the final quarter. 

A couple more baskets and the buzzer sounded, making the Cards 10th Region Champs for the third year in a row.

Morton led the team with 21 points, followed by Hampton with 12. The big man Trent Edwards, who had a major size advantage in the game, finished with 11. Tanner Walton and Stanley Smothers both finished with 6.  

Coach Cook is proud of his team, he loves his team, and he’s ready to make a deep run at Rupp. 

“If you play basketball here at GRC you’re going to sacrifice for your team. Guys play to win here, it’s not about any individual,” explained Cook. “We have some fantastic players, some of the best players in the state of Kentucky. This team is a prime example of guys who wanna put their team first and want to play to win. That’s what it’s all about, and that’s something people want to be a part of. Our community support is great and I’m just glad to be a part of it. At the end of the day all these guys are going to look back and say it wasn’t about me; it was about the team. They’re going to remember these moments when they sacrificed for the team, and they had these moments together winning regional championships. That’s what the game of basketball is all about, that’s what needs to be preached, that’s what we preach and that’s why we win.”  

GRC will face Perry County Central in the first round of the state tournament next Wednesday, March 16, at 6 p.m. at Rupp Arena. 

PHOTO GALLERY BY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CAMERON ANDERSON
(free full resolution downloads)