STEARNS — Colton Rawlings let his presence be felt early as a South Laurel Cardinal, leading all scorers with 28 points during his team’s 74-39 win over McCreary Central on Monday.
Rawlings, who transferred from North Laurel, dominated the action, scoring five points in the first quarter, nine points in the second quarter, 11 points in the third quarter, and three points in the game’s final eight minutes. He also finished with four 3-pointers while going 6-for-6 at the free-throw line.
“He’s getting better defensively and he’s very athletic,” South Laurel coach Jeff Davis said. “He can cause problems. Offensively, he was very patient and took some great shots and made plays to get other guys shots.”
Jordan Mabe turned in a 13-point effort for the Cardinals (1-0), who will be back in action Saturday against East Ridge at 3:30 p.m. in Hazard. Garrison Brown knocked down three 3-pointers, and finished with nine points while Landon Howard added six points, and Max Full er scored five points.
South Laurel dominated on both ends of the court, after the first quarter, turning a slim 14-13 advantage into a 35-23 lead at halftime.
The Cardinals outscored the Raiders, 18-12, during the third quarter to push their lead to 53-35 before limiting McCreary Central to only four fourth quarter points.
”It was the first game of the year and we had to get all the nerves out,” Davis said. “First half played hard, but got in foul trouble. We were able to weather the storm with foul trouble and got great bench play. It was a good team win.”
“The score didn’t really indicate how close the game was in the first half,” he added. “They were young, too. For our to get guys minutes in game situations right now is valuable. Blaine (Baker), Max Fullmer), and Hunter (Bundy) played really well tonight and we are going to need that from them.”
