The Hancock County Middle School Hornets visited Cougar gym on Thursday and proceeded to take both ends of a seventh and eighth-grade doubleheader.
The seventh-grade Cougars lost for just the second time all season, 45-23, and fell to 8-2 for the year. The eighth-grade Cougars led by as many as six points in the third quarter only to see the Hornets outscore them 19-4 the rest of the period to grab control. They went on to beat the Cougars 63-48.
SEVENTH-GRADE GAME
The Cougar seventh-graders had beaten the Hornets by two points earlier in the season in Hawesville, but it was all Hornets in this game.
Grayson County took an early 2-0 lead on a six-foot jumper by Hunter Tomes at the 5:38 mark, but that would turn out to be the Cougars’ only lead of the game. The Hornets then outscored the Cougars 14-5 the rest of the period to take command of the game.
The Cougars opened the second period with five unanswered points, including back-to-back baskets by Jerron Salazar to cut their deficit to just two points, 14-12 with 4:42 left in the first half, but the young Cougars would never be closer. The Hornets closed out the half with eight straight points to take a 10-point, 22-12 lead into the halftime intermission.
The Hornets led by as many as 15 points in the third quarter and increased their lead to 24 points, 45-21 with 2:29 left in the fourth quarter before finally taking a 22-point win. Hancock’s Kaleb Keown led all scorers in the game with 14 points.
Brayden Childress led the Cougars with five points, while Salazar and Eli Watson had four apiece. Nolan Hornbeck added three points, while River Blanton, Brayden Renfrow and Griffin Powell all had two points. Dillon Horn added one point to complete the Cougar scoring.
EIGHTH-GRADE GAME
When these two teams played each other in Hawesville, Hancock ran the Cougars out of the gym, winning by 17 points. The final 15-point margin in this game does not really indicate how close this game was for most of the time.
The Hornets looked as though they would run away again as they took an 11-point lead, 18-7 heading into the second quarter, but the Cougars began getting hot from behind the arc. Back-to-back threes by Timmy Hanover opening the second period cut the deficit to five points, 18-13 with 4:49 left in the first half.
The Hornets responded with back-to-back three-point possessions to run their lead back up to 11 points, but another Hanover three with 3:21 remaining began a 9-0 Cougar run that made it a two-point game, 24-22 with 1:37 left. The Cougars trailed by just a single point, 28-27 at the half.
When Zeb Bratcher began the third quarter with another three-pointer, the Cougars held their first lead since it was 2-0, 30-28.
The score was tied twice after that before Bratcher buried back-to-back threes to give the Cougars their largest lead of the night, six points at 38-32.
It was all downhill after that for the Cougars. Hancock outscored them 19-4 the rest of the period and led by nine points, 51-42 heading into the fourth quarter before pulling away for the 15-point win.
The Hornets put three players into double figures, led by Devyn Powers’ 19 points. Ryan Ogle added 11 points and Evan Ferry had 10.
The Cougars also put three players into double figures, led by Bratcher who also scored 19 points, including three three-pointers. Hanover hit four three-pointers for his 16 points, and Chandler McCrady scored 11 points before fouling out in the game’s final minutes.
Keegan Sharp and Owen Bratcher closed out the scoring with one point each.
By Don Brown, Local Sports
Reach Don at donbrown@k105.com
River Blanton put up a shot over Hancock’s
Aaron Garrett in the first half.
Chandler McCrady had 11 points in the eighth-grade
game, one of three Cougars in double figures.
Dillon Horn split two Hancock defenders
on his way to the hoop.
