By JAMES BROWN
WCLU Sports
Four seniors at Caverna have been chasing a district title since at least their freshman basketball season.
Jaylin Craine, twin brothers Tyson Martin and Kenyon Martin, and Cortavian Maxey have played for the Colonels since 2023 when the team lost by 2 in the first round of the 18th District Tournament. In 2024, they lost in the first round to LaRue County, and 2025 they lost in the title game to Green County.
On Saturday night on their home court, they cut down the nets. The final result — 48-40 in overtime against LaRue County — did not come easy.
“I’ve got some dudes that I can win with,” said first year Colonels coach Josh Pittman. “They’re mentally tough. They’ve gone through the wringer.”
Pittman issued a list of wringers, from a car crash on the day before the resumption of the All “A” State Tournament that involved Maxey, Craine and teammate Jaycion Graves, to the untimely death of schoolmate Eli Heacock a year ago.
The district championship was played on the one-year anniversary of Heacock’s death. The coach, players, and many Caverna fans in attendance wore purple T-shirts with “Eli Strong” printed on them.
“It’s exciting for [the players] because they worked really hard,” Pittman said after the game. “We talked about it before the game. The legacy, what do you want to leave, where 25 years down the road” how will people talk about this team.
“How I describe this team is grit, toughness and just found a way to win,” he said.
Each team had one, eight-point lead in the game. For Caverna, that was when Maxey took a full-court pass from Gavin Lightning and dunked the basketball right before the buzzer blared at the end of overtime.
The eight-point lead for the Hawks was two-and-a-half minutes into the third quarter. LaRue opened the second half on an 8-0 run. It included a pair of 3-pointers. That forced Pittman to call his first time out of the game.
“When it was 28-20, I wanted to see how [my players] responded,” he said.
They responded with a 12-0 run that extended into the first minute of the fourth quarter.
Caverna held the lead until late in the fourth, but never by more than four points. That inability to put away the game allowed LaRue’s Ayden Seidl to hit a game-tying 3 with 1:14 left in regulation.
Both teams milked the clock from there, but neither was able to score when they had a possession. The game headed to overtime tied, 37-37.
The Hawks had the first shot to take a lead, but missed a pair of free throws. At the other end, Tyson Martin was fouled after grabbing an offensive rebound. He hit the second free throw, and the Colonels led the rest of the way.
Maxey forced a turnover on LaRue’s next possession, and Lightning was fouled, but made the shot. He missed the free throw, and Caverna was ahead three, 40-37, with 2:26 left in overtime.
Next, Craine made one of two free throws to put his team ahead 41-37 with 55.3 seconds left. Seidl made another 3-pointer to cut the lead to 41-40 with 39.6 left.
Caverna turned the ball over on its next possession, but LaRue gave it right back.
From there, the Colonels forced a couple of turnovers and rebounded the Hawks’ misses. Kenyon Martin made three free throws, Craine made two, and Maxey flushed the dunk at the buzzer to set the final score, 48-40.
Prior to the Boys Fifth Region Tournament draw, Pittman said he’s scouted their potential opponents throughout the season, but, added, “we’re ready. We don’t care who we play.”
The Colonels (23-7 overall) drew Elizabethtown (11-16). They will play at 7 p.m. central time Wednesday at Green County High School.
Caverna’s coach said the goal is to win the region, “but you’ve got to win the first one.”
CAVERNA SCORING
Craine, 13; Tyson Martin, 12; Cortavian Maxey, 9; Kenyon Martin, 6; Gavin Lightning, 5; Jaciyon Graves, 3.
LARUE SCORING
Seidl, 18; Mikey Harris, 11; Cole Miller, 5; Owen McDowell, 2; Braylin McDowell, 2; Kasen McDowell, 2.
