Reece Davidson drops 36 points as North Laurel wins first-ever Sweet 16 game

Reece Davidson would not be denied his school’s first-ever Sweet 16 victory.

Davidson poured in a game-high 36 points for North Laurel on Thursday in Rupp Arena to lead the Jaguars past Breathitt County 54-53 in the first round of the UK HealthCare Boys Basketball Sweet 16. North Laurel has previously made four Sweet 16 appearances, including three over the last four years, but this is the school’s debut state tournament win.

The talented junior Davidson hit a pair of free throws with four seconds left to put North Laurel up by one point. Breathitt County had a chance to win it, but the Bobcats failed to get off a final shot as Davidson — the cousin of former Kentucky star Reed Sheppard, who also played for North Laurel — intercepted the inbounds pass and ran out the clock.

“From the tip, I was just like I’m going to do whatever it takes to win,” Davidson said postgame. “When I saw an open shot, I just took it. Thankfully my teammates had confidence in me to give me the ball.”

North Laurel turned the ball over just two times en route to victory while forcing Breathitt County into 12 miscues on the other end. In addition to his big scoring numbers, Davidson chipped in nine rebounds, four steals, and three assists for the Jaguars. He was aided by nine points from Cooper Elza. North Laurel shot 46.5 percent from the floor and 6-14 from deep despite a 17-day layoff in between games.

As for Breathitt County, the Bobcats were paced by 22 points from IU Indy signee Austin Sperry, who posted 22 points (9-12 FG), seven rebounds, and five assists before fouling out down the stretch. Sperry, who had opportunities to play his senior season out of state, broke out a couple of incredible highlight plays along the way.

“I had options to go play for Overtime (Elite) and a couple other places,” Sperry said postgame. “I considered those, but leaving these guys, I could never leave them. That’s the whole reason I stayed… I want to go with them to Rupp and show them how it feels. It didn’t feel right leaving. Breathitt County is my home and I couldn’t leave.”

Breathitt County shot 51.3 percent as a team and 6-13 from long range while also winning the rebounding battle 27-19, but a dozen turnovers (five from Sperry) proved costly. Braxton Terry chipped in 14 points and 11 boards for the Bobcats.

Austin Sperry AGAIN with a wild move into a tough finish.

Between the legs crossover to the rim??? https://t.co/ck1QUQT1sv pic.twitter.com/msxXqVcn5s

— Zack Geoghegan (@ZGeogheganKSR) March 27, 2025

North Laurel advances to Friday’s quarterfinals (6:00 p.m. ET) where they’ll face the winner of Lawrence County-Montgomery County.

Game Recap

Davidson opened things up quickly with four straight points for North Laurel, but Sperry was equally as hot — until a couple of early fouls forced him to the bench. Davidson was up to 10 points after the first quarter with Sperry not far behind sitting on seven. The score was knotted 12-12 despite the Jaguars’ 0-5 start from distance.

13 of North Laurel’s first 15 points came courtesy of Davidson. An 11-4 run from the Jags then gave them a 28-20 lead as Davidson was now up to 18 points. A 2-3 zone defense from head coach Nate Valentine was giving Breathitt County issues. Some timely free throws right before the half allowed the Bobcats to cut the deficit to six though as North Laurel took a 30-24 lead into the halftime break without recording a single turnover.

Breathitt County opened the second half on a 7-0 run to regain the lead and force a North Laurel timeout. The Jaguars answered out of the break, only for Breathitt County to counter with a three-pointer, tying the game at 34. North Laurel then broke off a 7-0 run of its own, capped by a Davidson fastbreak dunk. But Sperry went into his bag of tricks again for a between-the-legs crossover that led to an and-one finish. A two-minute scoring drought from the Jags to close the third quarter made the score 42-40 in favor of the Bobcats going into the final period.

A huge triple from Davidson put North Laurel in front 50-48 with 3:30 left in regulation. Sperry splashed in an even bigger shot from deep less than 90 seconds later to give Breahtitt County a 53-51 advantage with 2:20 on the clock. The Bobcats failed to score the rest of the way though. Davidson was fouled with 28 seconds left, hitting one of two free throws to make it a one-point game. Breathitt County tried to run out the clock but the Jaguars picked up a steal, leading to Davidson getting fouled at the other end.

With just four seconds remaining, Davidson knocked down both freebies and gave North Laurel the 54-53 edge. Breathitt County could not get off a potential buzzer-beater as Davidson picked off the crosscourt inbounds pass, ending the game and Breathitt County’s season for good.