Grayson County uses third-quarter run to best Taylor County in first round of state tournament

The 2026 UK HealthCare Boys’ Basketball Sweet 16 got underway on Wednesday. We saw No. 1 St. Xavier take down No. 2 Covington Catholic to get the tournament started, and No. 10 North Laurel upset No. 4 Warren Central in the following games. Already, two of the top four teams in KSR’s top 25 rankings have gone down in Rupp Arena. The second session of the day was tipped off by No. 11 Grayson County and No. 22 Taylor County.

Both teams entered the state tournament on massive winning streaks. Entering Wednesday night, neither team had lost since Feb. 10, but something had to give way at the Sweet 16.

As a result, the Grayson County Cougars defeated Taylor County 73-64, advancing to the Quarterfinals while sending the Cardinals home.

The Cougars got out to an early 8-3 lead thanks to a 6-0 run, and Western Kentucky commit Jack Logsdon’s first field goal of the game came in the form of a last-second shot to give Grayson County a 12-9 lead at the conclusion of the first quarter.

Both teams struggled to put the ball in the hoop early — perhaps the break between the region championships and the state tournament got everyone a bit rusty to start things off.

Taylor County reclaimed the lead, making it a 17-15 ballgame with 3:52 to go in the first half. Logsdon would cash in on a three soon after to give the Cougars the lead again, but now, we were finally getting the back and forth affair that we had hoped for. At the break, it was 25-24 Grayson County.

In the third quarter, Grayson County began to take control of the game. They went on a 13-0 run during the period, shooting 11-15 overall and 4-6 from beyond the arc as they got out to a 51-41 lead to end the quarter. With eight minutes to go, the Cougars had their biggest lead of the contest.

Taylor County didn’t go down easy — fighting back to make it a close game late, but the Cardinals simply couldn’t overcome their third-quarter stumble. The Cougars’ winning streak extends to 10 games, while Taylor County’s season comes to an end with a 26-10 record.

Grayson County will take on the winner of No. 12 Great Crossing and RV Danville Christian. All the way back on Dec. 29, the Cougars actually beat Danville Christian 79-74 in the Henry County Invitational Tournament. Regardless of whoever they end up playing, Grayson County’s Quarterfinals matchup is set for 1:30 p.m. ET on Friday.