GLASGOW – Barren County hung around with one of the top teams in Region 4 boys’ basketball for most of Friday’s matchup against Clinton County at Barren County High School.

But when maybe one more push might have got the Trojans over the top, it was the Bulldogs who instead regained the momentum and pulled away for a 59-49 win.

Trailing by 10 points at halftime, Barren County (15-11) got back within two points on Carson Browning’s basket inside with 7:37 left in the game.

Clinton County (20-4) then did what had been successful all night – get the ball to senior power forward Jaxson Mason. His two straight baskets underneath the rim stretched the lead bag out and started a decisive 16-4 run that ended with a Cade Button basket that put the Bulldogs up 54-40 with 1:14 to play.

“We’ve just got to be better offensively,” Barren County coach Warren Cunningham said. “I think you can look at our schedule and say that’s kind of been an issue with us. Against the best teams, for the most part we struggle to score. Tonight with 49 – you’re not going to beat those guys scoring 49. We’ve got to be a little bit better offensively. At times we have to finish more plays when we get the ball inside, and then we’ve got to make a few more shots along the way.”

Clinton County jumped out to a 13-2 lead to open the game, with Mason wearing out the Trojans in the interior with eight first-quarter points – four coming from the free-throw line. It was that type of night for the Bulldogs’ big man, who finished with a game-high 28 points and pulled down seven rebounds in the win.

“He finishes really good,” Cunningham said of Mason. “He uses his body to create some angles and he can also step out and shoot a little bit. I know one time down there tonight he shot a little face-up 10- or 12-footer. He steps out and shoots some 3s too. He’s just a really effective player because he uses his size and his strength, and he’s got good skill in terms of using those things to create some easy shots for him around the basket.”

The Trojans trailed 17-7 after the first quarter and ultimately made no headway in the second, still down 10 at 31-21 at the break.

Barren’s offense stirred in the third quarter, as Kade Hardy hit a pair of 3-pointers and Weston Shelton hit another – his trey with 36 seconds left in the quarter made it a 38-34 deficit heading into the fourth – as the Trojans outscored Clinton 13-7 over the eight-minute span.

Then came Browning’s bucket to make it a two-point game before Mason took over to help lock down the win for the Bulldogs.

“It seems like we’ve been in that situation a lot, where we’re down two,” Cunningham said. “You look at the Bowling Green game (a 69-53 loss on Jan. 13), we were down two in the fourth and then they go on a run and it got away from us. Glasgow, we were in those situations where we cut it to two and then they go score the next six points and the lead goes right back to eight. So we’ve had some opportunities in those little stretches there.

“Tonight it takes a lot out of you to come back when you did yourself a hole. You use up so much energy to get back in it and then you’ve got to have another burst there. We’re going to keep working at it. Hopefully in the really near future we can get over that hump and win these games.”

Clinton County committed just five turnovers in the game, while the Trojans had 14 turnovers.

William Beatty, Button and Chase Harmon added eight points each for the Bulldogs.

Cameron Pippen finished with a team-high 14 points for the Trojans. Shelton had nine points, and Jaxson Byrd and Hardy added eight points each.

Barren County hosts Greenwood on Monday.

CCHS 17 14 7 21 – 59

BCHS 7 14 13 15 – 49

CCHS – Mason 28, Beatty 8, Button 8, Harmon 8, McCutchen 4, Davis 2, Poore 1.

BCHS – Pippen 14, Shelton 9, Byrd 8, Hardy 8, Browning 6, Fryar 2, Griggs 2.

Girls

Barren County 62, Clinton County 23

Barren County used a dominant second quarter to put away Clinton County for a 62 53 win on Friday at Barren County.

Leading 12-3 by the end of the first quarter, the Trojanettes outscored the Lady Bulldogs 23-2 in the second period to build 35-5 lead by halftime.

Adalynn Slagle scored 16 points to lead Barren County (24-2), which won its 12th straight game.

Mahalia Burton also reached double digits with 14 points, while Shelby Byrd and Hannah Bragg tallied seven points each in the win.

The Trojanettes forced 21 turnovers, 13 in the first half, and outrebounded Clinton County (7-16) 30-25 in the win.

Abby Davis and Crista Thacker scored five points each to pace the Lady Bulldogs.

Barren County is back in action Monday against Greenwood.

CCHS 3 2 8 10 – 23

BCHS 12 23 16 11 – 62

CCHS – Davis 5, C. Thacker 5, Duvall 3, Longwell 3, Young 3, Ipock 2, Matthews 2.

BCHS – Slagle 16, Burton 14, Bragg 7, Byrd 7, Atkinson 5, Cannon 3, Kaumanns 3, H. Wilson 3, Harris 2, McFall 2.