BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

PAINTSVILLE — Bryson Dials erupted in the second half and delivered in the big moments as Martin County edged Johnson Central 80-76 on the road Jan. 30.

The sophomore iced the game at the free-throw line.

“I let the game come to me in the second half,” Dials said. “I got in foul trouble early, but I got it going for my squad.”

Martin County struck first when Braxton Keathley scooped a pass to Eli Mills on the wing for a 3-pointer. After Johnson Central answered and briefly moved in front, Devan Maynard responded with an up-and-under through contact and converted the old-fashioned three-point play for a 6-5 Cardinal lead.

Alan Moore floated a pass over the top of the defense to a fading Keathley for a trey, and then followed with a stop-and-pop 3-pointer to keep the momentum with Martin County.

The Cardinals burst became a run. Keathley drove and found Moore between the trees for a bucket off the block. On the ensuing possession Moore cleaned up a miss and kicked it out to Brayden Marcum for a corner triple.

Maynard controlled the glass again, Keathley pushed in transition and pulled up from the wing for another long-range shot as Martin County surged ahead 20-10. Johnson Central trimmed the margin late in the quarter, but Moore beat the first-quarter buzzer with a putback off the glass to give Martin County a 25-18 lead after one.

Maynard opened the second with a finish and Keathley scored an easy bucket that forced a timeout at 29-21. The Eagles answered and closed the half with a seven-point burst in the final minute to pull within 41-38 at intermission.

Johnson Central carried that momentum into the third, scoring first out of the break, taking the lead and pushing it to 52-45 to earn their biggest advantage of the night.

Martin County steadied at the stripe when Mills was fouled on a 3-point attempt and hit all three from the charity stripe. Keathley and Maynard connected for key finishes around the rim to keep the Cardinals within striking distance.

Then Dials flipped the game late in the third. He nailed a bomb from the top of the key to put Martin County back in front and scored again just before the horn to send the Cardinals into the fourth up 58-55.

Dials stayed aggressive in the final quarter. He answered a tie with a hand in his face and later knocked down a step back jumper as Martin County tried to create breathing room. Johnson Central kept closing and cut it to 69-68 at the four-minute mark.

Out of the timeout, Marcum made the swing play: a steal that led to Dials on the other end. Dials sold the fake, watched an Eagle fly by and drilled a dagger for a 72-68 lead.

After Johnson Central answered with a corner 3-pointer out of a timeout to make it, Marcum made another hustle play. He deflected an inbounds pass that Mills recovered and converted into a layup for a 74-71 cushion with just over a minute remaining.

“I stay ready,” Marcum said. “I kept my eyes on the ball and was prepared for it.” Marcum said he embraces his role, “To be the best defender on the court and shoot corner threes,” he said.

Dials closed it at the line, sinking four free throws in the final 1:05 as he handled pressure defense out top, and Mills iced it with two foul shots in the closing seconds for the four-point win.

Mills said the Cardinals’ balanced attack and road toughness sent a message.

“We can compete with anyone in this region, anywhere,” Mills said. “They played well, but we played better.”

Mills also pointed to the program’s edge since the All ‘A’ State run ended short of their ultimate goal.

“After the loss in the Elite Eight, we knew we had to trust each other and come back and play hard on defense, win the rebounding battle,” Mills said. “We came in here and showed them we got that grit. We battled it out, Brayden got two big steals and we came back and won.”

Dials said the Cardinals continue to embrace the chip on their shoulder.

“Every year the region talks down on us, can’t play together, and then year in and year out we prove that we can play,” Dials said. “We are Martin County.”

He added, “Everyone did their job tonight. I love these guys and I’ve never had so much fun playing basketball.”

Keathley credited the group’s late execution after some previous fourth-quarter slips.

“We’ve let some games slip away in the fourth quarter and today we fought through it,” Keathley said. “We did an amazing job executing at the end of the game. Bryson came up clutch. Devan is a rebounding machine. Brayden made some key steals and Eli knocked down some big shots. Alan came out with big energy and I’m really proud of him tonight.”

Keathley added that the Cardinals’ mindset doesn’t change, even in a hostile rivalry gym.

“We have the best players, best coaches, and we come to win,” Keathley said. “It’s just business.”

Head coach Jason James said his team’s poise showed most when Johnson Central grabbed momentum in the middle quarters.

“A lot of resilience tonight,” James said. “We got a little rattled but did a good job of staying calm late.”

James also highlighted the trust he has in Marcum in big moments, both defensively and when the shot is there.

“Brayden had some big steals and a huge shot tonight,” James said. “I wanted him to take it. The way he shoots it, he hits bombs.”

James said Johnson Central’s defensive focus on Dials opened opportunities for Keathley, but he wasn’t surprised to see Dials close the game.

“They started keying in on Bryson and that opened Braxton up,” James said. “But Bryson likes the big games; he steps up in the big moments.”

And the road setting mattered, too.

“If you can go on the road and win in the 57th, it’s huge,” James said.

Dials fired in 19 points (17 in the second half), secured four rebounds, and delivered three assists.

Martin County got 15 points from Maynard on 7-of-9 shooting with seven rebounds and four assists. Mills scored 10 and was perfect at the free-throw line (5 for 5). He added two assists and a rebound.

Marcum stuffed the stat sheet with seven points, four steals, three rebounds and an assist. Moore added four points, five rebounds and an assist.

“We fought adversity in the middle of the game,” Marcum said. “They took a lead on us but we fought back and showed everyone who the best team in the region is.”

Martin County was set to play Paintsville Feb. 3. Details will be in next week’s edition.

The Cards will take on Magoffin County, Feb. 4 and play at the Williamson Fieldhouse, Feb. 6 against Independence (WV). The squad returns home Monday for a game with Ashland Blazer.