‘Win or go home.’ Murray State commit leads North Laurel through ‘ugly win’ in Sweet 16
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2025 Girls’ Sweet 16 coverage
Click below to read all of the coverage from Kentucky.com and the Lexington Herald-Leader during the Girls’ Sweet 16 state basketball tournament in Rupp Arena.
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North Laurel’s Brooke Nichelson didn’t have the performance she was hoping for in last year’s trip to Rupp Arena, so she was determined to show up as her best self ahead of the Jaguars’ first-round game Wednesday against Ashland Blazer in the 2025 Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Girls’ Basketball Sweet 16.
North Laurel (32-2) head coach Eddie Mahan, who has led North Laurel to three consecutive Sweet 16 appearances, understands the importance of the Murray State signee’s leadership, and said that Nichelson only needed time to adjust to the pressure of being relied upon as the star.
“Two years ago, she was phenomenal,” Mahan said. “She was unbelievable. But at the time, there was a lot of senior leadership on that team, so she got the freedom to just come out and play. Last year was the first time we started to rely upon her, and it was all on her responsibility. You saw a different Brooke Nichelson this entire season because she knew, coming into this season, she was going to put a lot of the load on her shoulders. And you saw she didn’t shy away from it today.”
Now one year removed from North Laurel’s 21-point loss to Franklin County, Nichelson guided the Jaguars to a 51-42 victory Wednesday with 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting, 10 rebounds, one assist, four blocks and two steals in 28 minutes on the floor. The senior guard and 13th Region Miss Kentucky Basketball finalist said the fact that it’s her final season of high school basketball has caused her to view the responsibility in a new way.
“Last year, you could tell that I was more scared because I knew all the pressure was on me,” Nichelson said. “But this year’s different because it’s win or go home, so I know I have to put a lot more on my shoulders.”
Nichelson was one of two Jaguars to finish with a double-double. Sophomore center Mariella Claybrook posted 14 points, 11 rebounds, one assist, two blocks and one steal. On a tough-shooting day that also saw 23 North Laurel turnovers, only senior shooting guard Bella Sizemore scored additional points; Sizemore added nine points and four rebounds.
Ashland Blazer (21-11) was led by EKU signee and 16th Region Miss Kentucky Basketball finalist Kenleigh Woods, who finished with 23 points, and grabbed three rebounds and two steals. Sophomore Brookelyn Duckwyler added seven points, two rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals in the back-and-forth affair, which served as a rematch of the teams’ Dec. 30 game — a 67-40 Jaguars win played without Woods or junior guard Gabby Karle.
On Wednesday, the Jaguars took an early lead, but did not successfully maintain a comfortable lead until late in the third quarter. Following a 20-20 draw after two quarters, the Kittens opened the second half with six straight points; North Laurel answered by outscoring Ashland Blazer 17 to nine for the remainder of the period. Nichelson was responsible for eight of those points. Kittens head coach Stacy Davis said the swing — and nine second-half turnovers — pushed the momentum in the Jaguars’ direction.
“We knocked down a couple 3s there. I thought we shot it with confidence there to get up. ... And then the ball just turned, they got some things that went their way. You know, we turned the ball over at crucial moments that ended up leading to some easy baskets for them.”
Mahan credited his team’s strong defense — which held the Kittens to zero field goals until the 2:16 marker of the fourth quarter — as the reason for the “ugly win.”
“That run was really implemented by our defense,” Mahan said. “And then, obviously, Brooke can be a one-man wrecking crew in transition. The last thing you want to do is to be jogging back with her on the floor because she is absolutely going to get a layup out of it.”
The Jaguars will next face the winner of George Rogers Clark (25-7) and Franklin-Simpson (28-2) on Friday at 11 a.m.
This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 3:28 PM.
