Lincoln County Middle School teams claimed two trophies in the Kentucky Basketball Academy (KBA) 12th Region Tournament this past weekend, with the eighth-grade Eagles winning their division and the sixth-grade team finishing as runner-up in its division.
Lincoln’s eighth-grade squad (22-4) rolled 4-0 through the regional tournament at KBA in Lexington, wrapping up its play with a 42-40 win over Pulaski County in the championship game.
The Eagles had to battle from behind to claim the title win, with Pulaski jumping ahead 17-10 in the first quarter. However, Lincoln had erased the deficit by the break, outscoring Pulaski 10-3 in the second quarter to make it 20-20 at halftime.
Lincoln opened up a double-digit lead in the third quarter, rolling 15-2 over Pulaski to make it 35-22. 
Pulaski’s offense rebounded in the final frame to threaten Lincoln’s lead, but the 18-7 advantage was not enough to overcome Lincoln’s lead.
Baylor Mattingly and Jaxon Smith scored 11 points apiece to lead Lincoln in the win. Bryson Young contributed nine points, Rodney Alcorn had eight points, six rebounds and three blocks, and  Blaise Brown had three points and four assists.
The finals’ win was not the first victory for Lincoln against Pulaski in the tourney. The eighth-grade Eagles had to go to overtime to claim victory over Pulaski in their second pool play game, edging out a 43-39 win.
Blaise Brown, Rodney Alcorn and Jaxon Smith combined for 32 points to help Lincoln earn a No. 1 seed in the tournament, with Brown getting 12 points and nine rebounds and Alcorn and Smith each adding 10 points. Alcorn also had five steals with three blocks. 
Baylor Mattingly finished with nine points and Bryson Young had two.
Mattingly led Lincoln’s overall scoring in the 12th Region title run, collecting 43 points in four games. He had his high-point effort in the team’s first pool play game, tallying 14 points in a 51-24 rout of Rockcastle County.
Rodney Alcorn added 11 points with eight rebounds, Cade Jenkins scored nine points, Blaise Brown  and Jaxon Smith each had four points, Bryson Young had three, Michael Henderson had two points with six rebounds and Brady Weaver and Colin Green each had two points.
The eighth-grade Eagles also posted a lopsided win over Rockcastle County in the semifinal round, advancing to the championship game with a 57-35 win.
In the semifinal win over Rockcastle, Lincoln was paced by Michael Henderson with 16 points and six rebounds. Baylor Mattingly added nine points, Jaxon Smith also had nine points with three steals, Blaise Brown had seven points, Cade Jenkins had seven points and four assists, Rodney Alcorn had four points and three steals, Brady Weaver got three points and Clayton Davis two.
Lincoln’s results in the sixth- and seventh-grade tourneys follow:
6th Grade Results
Pulaski County got the better of Lincoln County in the final of the KBA 12th Region 6th-Grade Tournament, topping the Eagles 57-49 to claim the championship title.
The Eagles (24-3) led at the end of three of the four quarterstops in the close game, but Pulaski used a 23-10 fourth-quarter scoring run to secure the win.
Zack Moore was Lincoln’s scoring leader in the final with 17 points. Tramane Alcorn also hit double figures with 15 points. He also had six assists and three steals.
Layne Lark added six points, Colton Ralston had four points, five rebounds and five assists, Xzavion Grey also had four points and Jansen McAninch had three points.
The sixth-grade Eagles earned their spot in the finals with a win over Pulaski County and Pine Knott in pool play and a victory against Garrard County in the semifinal round.
Lincoln’s win over Pulaski was in the opening round of pool play, as the Eagles romped 44-26.
The Eagles jumped out to a 20-8 lead in the first quarter and maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
Tramane Alcorn led Lincoln in the victory with 13 points, three assists and three steals and Layne Lark followed close behind with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Zack Moore finished with eight points and three assists, Colton Ralston scored six points, Jansen McAninch had four points, Jackson Sims had two and Xzavion Grey had one.
Lincoln took on Pine Knott of McCreary County in the second pool play game and posted another double-digit victory, 41-26.
The Eagles jumped on Pine Knott 13-6 in the first quarter only to have their opponent turn the tables in the second period, outscoring them 8-4 to trim the lead to 17-14 at the half.
But it was all Lincoln in the second half, with the Eagles doubling up Pine Knott 12-6 in both the third and fourth quarters for the easy win.
No scoring was available.
Cakewalk would be a perfect definition for Lincoln’s first game in tournament play. The Eagles, who were the No. 1 seed and had a first-round bye, rolled into the final of the tournament with a 47-18 semifinal rout of Garrard County.
Lincoln led just 15-9 after the first but outscored Garrard 12-5 in the second period to open up a 27-14 halftime lead and Garrard never threatened the lead.
Tramane Alcorn poured in 23 points to lead Lincoln in the win. He also had four rebounds.
Zack Moore finished with eight points and four rebounds, Layne Lark scored four points, Xzavion Grey and Trevor Miracle each had three points, Jansen McAninch got two points and four rebounds, Brian Gray had two points, Colton Ralston had one point and four assists and Trevor Bennett had one point.
7th Grade Results
The Lincoln County seventh-grade Eagles came up on the losing side of the scoreboard in all three of its games in the KBA 12th Region Tournament.
The Eagles (20-5) were edged by Rockcastle County in their opener in pool play then Pulaski County took Lincoln down in the second pool play game as well as the first round of tournament play.
Lincoln edged Rockcastle County 23-18 in scoring in the second half of the closely-contested pool play game, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a six-point halftime deficit as Rock held on for the win.
Jaxon Smith led Lincoln with 22 points and seven rebounds. Cruise Wilson also hit double figures, scoring 10 points. Lee Amon added four points, Colin Green had three points and three assists, Clayton Davis had two points and three assists and Lawson Hon had one point.
Pulaski County posted double-digit wins over Lincoln in its pool play and tourney wins.
In the second pool play game, Pulaski rolled 44-26 over the Eagles.
It was a low-scoring first half, with Pulaski leading 7-2 after the first quarter and both teams getting just nine points apiece in the second for a 16-11 halftime score.
Both teams put up double-digit scoring in the third quarter, with Pulaski showing a 14-10 advantage to post a 30-21 lead. But it was all Pulaski in the fourth as the team rolled 14-5 to secure the win.
Jaxon Smith and Tramane Alcorn were Lincoln’s scoring leaders with nine points each. Cruise Wilson finished with four points, nine rebounds and three assists and Lee Amon and Lawson Hon had two points apiece.
Lincoln edged Pulaski 7-6 in the first quarter of the first-round tournament game, but Pulaski used consistent double-digit scoring the rest of the way to secure the 49-35 win.  
No scoring available.
KBA 12th Region Tournament
at Lexington
8th Grade
Championship Game   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    10    10    15    7     –    42
Pulaski    17    3    2    18     –     40
Semifinal Round   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    15    22    15    5     –    57
Rock   7    5    13    10     –    35                
Pool Play #2   
1    2    3    4    0T    F
Lincoln    6    7    12    11    7 –    43   
Pulaski    12    12    4    8    3 –     39
Pool Play #1   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    17    17    10    7     –    51
Rockcastle    6    3    11    4     –     24

6th Grade
Championship Game   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    19    8    12    10     –    49
Pulaski    9    11    14    23     –     57
Semifinal Round   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    15    12    9    11     –    47
Garrard    9    5    2    2     –     18                
Pool Play #2   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    13    4    12    12    –    41   
Pine Knott    6    8    6    6    –     26
Pool Play #1   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    20    13    7    4    –    44
Rockcastle    8    8    2    8     –     26

7th Grade
First Round Tournament   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    7    7    12    9    –    35
Pulaski    6    10    19    14     –     49
Pool Play #2   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    2    9    10    5     –    26
Pulaski    7    9    14    14     –     44                
Pool Play #1   
1    2    3    4        F
Lincoln    8    11    11    12     –    42
Rockcastle    12    13    9    9     –     43