Hindman, Ky – March 10, 2025 – Matthew Hudson
The Breathitt County Bobcats brought home their 13th Region Title with their thrilling 61-59 defeat of the #4 Ranked Team in Kentucky, the Hazard Bulldogs in the 14th Region Championship Game.
This is the Breathitt County Bobcat’s 2nd Regional Title in just three years, they narrowly missed out on another Title last year with their disappointing 62-55 loss to Perry Central in the Championship Game.
The game started off with a bang as both teams came out ready to play, Breathitt County led at the end of the 1st Quarter 18-17 behind Austin Sperry’s 11 1st quarter points.
The Hazard Bulldogs and Coach Al Holland demonstrated why they have been so hard to beat throughout the years as they made the right adjustments and came charging back in the 2nd Quarter. With just 50 seconds left until Halftime Hazard held a six point lead and had the ball, it looked like Hazard was going into half with a comfortable lead.
Senior Joseph Honeycutt, son of Coach Jeff Honeycutt, flipped the switch and the momentum however as he got a quick steal and assist to Senior Aaron Stallard to cut the lead to 4, Honeycutt then followed that up with a buzzer beater three-pointer to cut the lead to one going into the half. Score 26-25 Hazard on top.
The 3rd Quarter was a back and forth struggle with neither team being able to get the advantage. Breathitt outscored Hazard by just one point in the 3rd and entered the 4th and final quarter all tied up at 35.
One of my favorite quotes is “Big time players, make big time plays, in big time games.” That being said it was time to see who was going to be this “Big Time Player”. Tie game, one quarter left, Regional Championship on the line, one team goes to Rupp, one team goes home, a situation lots of kids dream of and only a few get the chance to experience.
Austin Sperry, a name many have grown familiar with not only in Kentucky but across the US, was this “Big Time Player”. Sperry looked exhausted, he had a 35 Point Triple-Double to start the Tournament, a 32 Point Double-Double in the Semi-Finals, and had played every minute of the Championship game going into the 4th Quarter. Sperry didn’t let a little thing like exhaustion stop him, he pushed through and scored 14-points in the 4th and finished the game with a team-high 27 points.
The Bobcats came out on an 8-2 run to begin the 4th, a run which was punctuated by a huge two-handed slam by Sperry in traffic. Breathitt played controlled, disciplined basketball throughout the 4th and had amassed a 7-point lead with only 25 seconds remaining.
No great game is complete without a little drama, Hazard fought back and with 4 seconds remaining Seth Caudill was able to sink a three-pointer to cut the lead to two. Sperry had a chance to ice the game at the free-throw line but missed both shots. Kenyon Higgins gathered the rebound and found Caudill at half-court for one last desperation heave that missed just right as the clock expired.
Some of the key performers for the Bobcats were Joseph Honeycutt with some huge three-pointers, Payton Collins with great ball handling and timely shooting, Braxton Terry being a stud in the paint on both offense and defense, and Cannon Gross with some big time defensive stops.
Some outstanding careers came to an end last night for the Hazard Bulldogs. We will miss seeing these young men play here in the mountains and wish them all the best in whatever they decide to pursue in life. Best wishes to the Hazard Bulldog Seniors: Evin Eversole(2025 Regional Player of the Year), Rydge Beverly, Kenyon Higgins, Nick Ratliff, and Braden Yonts.
The Breathitt County Bobcats move on to the KHSAA Sweet 16 and will make play against the 13th Region Champions, the North Laurel Jaguars, on March 27th at 11:00 AM.
