Dawgs thump Cougars, advance to 4th Region semis
The Bulldogs got off to a slightly slow start Monday night in the 4th Region Basketball Tournament in Diddle Arena against a hard fighting Logan County squad, but by halftime, were putting their game together.
Sparked by a buzzer beating half-court shot by CCHS center Cannon Young that banked in for three points, the Dawgs went to the dressing room on a high as our Big Blue Faithful Clinton County fans rose to their feet to show the Dawgs their support.
As the second half progressed, Clinton County just simply overpowered the Cougars in those final 16 minutes of action, and it became clear down the stretch that Logan County was becoming a fatigued opponent that just didn’t have any other tricks in their bag to combat what the Dawgs were throwing their way.
After a two year absence from the 4th Regionals, the Dawgs made a statement that got the attention of everyone watching from the Diddle Arena seats Monday night.
Clinton County’s win Monday night followed what was one of the biggest upsets in tournament history, with the Barren County Trojans handing Warren Central a first round defeat.
With the 58-44 win over Warren Central, Barren County also extended its season and will advance to the semi-final round of the tournament, facing our Dawgs in the next round of play.
That Clinton – Barren County matchup comes next Monday night, again in Diddle Arena. Tip is set for 6:30 p.m.

Big Blue Faithful shows up again
Diddle Arena was packed with in Big Blue Faithful Bulldog fans Monday night as the Dawgs took on Logan County, and once again, the CCHS 6th man Award has to go to our fan base.
Included among the CCHS fans on hand Monday, I spotted several Bowling Green residents who hail from Clinton County and came out to get behind their alma mater for the first round contest.
I guarantee you that the players on the floor felt the push every time our fan base rose to their feet and cheered the Dawgs on – and there were multiple instances of the Clinton County fan base coming alive during Monday’s battle.
Find some blue attire and make the 90 minute drive west next Monday to get behind our Bulldogs once again as they work to advance through this set of 4th Region Tourney brackets.

Leighman Messer headed to the Hall of Fame
Leighman Messer, who was a familiar figure on the Clinton County High School boys’ varsity basketball bench for 16 years, will be posthumously inducted into the 13th Region Boys Basketball Hall of Fame.
Messer, the father of former Bulldog and Lady Bulldog Head Basketball Coach Todd Messer, passed away in April of last year, after sitting alongside Todd on the boys’ basketball bench as an assistant coach for 16 seasons.
He also served for one season as an assistant coach for the Clay County Tigers.
However, in the 13th Region, Leighman was better known for being one of the best basketball officials in that region, and will be inducted into the Hall of Fame for his officiating reputation.
He was an active official for 27 years in the 13th Region, although he never let his officiating license expire when he stepped away from officiating, a total span of 45 years as a licensed “stripe” on the hardwood.
In addition to countless district and regional tournament games, he earned rankings that put him on the floor in both the boys’ and girls’ All “A” Classic State Tournaments, as well as the KHSAA Girls’ Sweet 16 State Tournament.
A highly religious man, Leighman’s time on our Clinton County bench meant he stepped over to the official scorer’s table several times a night and would strike up a conversation – often about a missed call made by our game officials – with myself and the official scorer that year.
A wry sense of humor, it became a running joke between us when Leighman would look over and ask “how many time outs do we have now,” eventually prompting me to put up a Post-It note on the side of the table telling him just how many time-outs were left.
An honor well deserved, congrats to Leighman’s legacy in the 13th Region, and to his entire family on this honor.
It’s roundball tourney time in Kentucky – don’t call me until April!