Picking up a third consecutive 4th Region All ‘A’ Classic championship title, the Clinton County Bulldogs earned yet another trip to next week’s State Tournament in Owensboro.
The eventual lop-sided championship win came after a somewhat slow Bulldog start, but ended up in satisfying fashion for the Dawgs, a 53-40 double-digit victory that was the team’s 14th consecutive win on the season for a 15-2 overall record.
Clinton County’s title defense came against the Metcalfe County Hornets last Friday night, January 9, on the Hornets’ home floor in front of a sizable crowd made up of fans for both teams.
In the end, as one loyal Bulldog fan was heard yelling near the end of the contest, it was time to “get the ladders out Bulldogs,” a reference to Clinton County’s players cutting down the championship nets in the post-game celebration.
The Bulldogs trailed several times during the first quarter of action, with Metcalfe jumping out to a 7-3 early lead before Jaxson Mason and Drew Davis combined scoring down the stretch to take a single digit lead into the second quarter, 10-9.
Mason opened scoring with a free throw, followed by a two-point basket from Carter Gibson to give Clinton County a 13-11 lead with 5:39 remaining to be played in the first half.
Metcalfe overtook the Dawgs for a final Hornet lead with 4:42 mark, 14-13, before Clinton County closed out that second quarter with a 7-2 run on scoring from Mason and point guard Noah McCutchen and reserve forward Zach Poore, to end the half ahead 20-16.
Although Metcalfe controlled the pace of the game for much of the contest, the Bulldogs continued to best the Hornets at the slow-down pace of play.
Davis opened the quarter with a field goal with 7:11 on the game clock, then Mason went to work underneath, adding eight points with Will Beaty closing out the quarter on a driving layup that put Clinton County out in front 34-22 going into the game’s final period.
Refusing to go away, the Hornets continued to stick around and force the Dawgs into the slow paced game, but Clinton County out-performed its opponents nonetheless down to the final buzzer.
Mason opened the quarter with a three point basket from the corner at 5:55, while Davis, Beaty, and McCutchen added additional scoring down the stretch.
Metcalfe made a final quarter 9-1 scoring run that cut the lead to just seven points with just over a minute remaining to be played, but the Bulldogs held their ground, putting together a 10-4 run of their own to end the game, and claim the championship title with the 53-40 win.
With its third straight 4th Region All ‘A’ Classic championship title, the Bulldogs will head to the All ‘A’ Classic State Tournament next week in the Owensboro Sportscenter, taking the floor first against Louisville Evangel Christian from Jefferson County’s 6th Region.
The Bulldogs’ opening round game against the Eagles is set for an early morning 8:30 a.m. central time tip-off, Thursday, January 22.
Individual scoring for Clinton County in the championship game was:
Mason    19
Davis    12
McCutchen    10
Beaty    9
Gibson    2
Poore    1

Clinton sails into title game with 82-50
dispatching of Russellville in semi-finals
Making it to the championship game of last week’s 4th Regional All ‘A’ Classic Tournament was made possible with a lop-sided win in the semi-final round of play.
The Bulldogs found themselves going up against a highly touted Russellville Panther squad that had defeated Monroe County in an opening round played on the Falcons’ home court.
Clinton County came at the Panthers hard and fast to get play underway in Cumberland County last Thursday, January 8, with Cameron Irwin dropping in an opening set of free throws to give the Dawgs a quick 2-0 lead.
Clinton County never looked back as they put together a late first quarter run on scoring from Beaty, Davis and Chase Harmon down the stretch, in addition to a three point basket from Carter Gibson, his first score since joining the team earlier this season and being declared eligible for play earlier in the day.
The Dawgs, with a double-digit 19-9 lead going into the second quarter of action, continued to hit Russellville fast and hard, building up a one-time 38-19 lead before ending the first half on a last second basket from Mason to take a 40-23 lead into the mid-way break.
The teams swapped baskets as the third quarter initially played out, with Russellville managing an early 13-3 run that cut the Bulldog lead to 11 points, 52-41 with just under 4:00 showing on the third quarter clock.
The Bulldogs bounced back to true form down the stretch, closing out the quarter with a 12-4 run of their own to own a 64-45 advantage going into the final period of action.
Davis and McCutchen opened the final period with Bulldog points that confirmed to everyone in the gym just which team was in control.
Down the stretch, Clinton County finished strong as Beaty, Davis, Mason and Gibson added points, leading up to a basket by reserve William Guffey, followed by a final free throw from reserve Drake Thrasher that set the score at 82-50.
Individual scoring for Clinton County was:
Beaty    23
Mason    18
Davis    12
Gibson    7
Harmon    7
Irwin    5
McCutchen    4
Thrasher    3
Guffey    2
Poore    1

Bulldog Will Beaty put this shot high on the glass last Thursday night during a runaway layup made against Russellville.  The shot came during the Bulldogs’ semi-final win over the Panthers, 82-50.  Beaty finished the game with 23 points.

With a sea of Bulldog fans in the background, the Clinton County High School boys’ basketball team and coaching staff began a celebration seconds after the final horn sounded last Friday night in Edmonton, marking the third straight year the team has claimed the 4th Region All ‘A’ Classic Championship title.