Down by 20 points with a little under two minutes remaining in the third quarter, the Grayson County Cougars put together an unbelievable comeback to tie the game and send it into overtime, then won it in the extra period, 63-58 over the shell-shocked Edmonson County Wildcats.
As improbable as it was, it was a win for the ages, one that will be remembered for years to come when any discussion of the Cougar basketball program comes up.
Edmonson County’s Griffin Spainhoward scored with 55 seconds left in the first period to put the Wildcats down by two points, 9-7 heading into the second period. Spainhoward’s shot was the beginning of a 19-0 run that saw the Wildcats take a 24-9 lead with 48.7 seconds left in the half.
Jaxon Higdon kept the Cougars from being shutout in the period when he buried a three-pointer with 4.3 seconds left to make it 24-12 at the half.
When Mason Pierce buried a three with 1:51 left in the third quarter, the Wildcats held their largest lead of the night, 20 points at 42-22, and the Cougars’ chances of being able to come back seemed to be slim or none.
Adding to the Cougars’ woes was the fact that they had missed their first 10 free throw opportunities. They did not hit their first free throw until the 3:20 mark of the third quarter when Q’Daryius McHenry hit a bonus free throw. Part of the turnaround was that the Cougars then hit 19-of 22 free throws the rest of the game.
As the fourth quarter got under way, the Cougars faced a 17-point deficit, 42-25. When Nick Clemmons opened the scoring in the final period with a lay-in, the Cougars were down 19 with 7:21 left to play.
That’s when the comeback began. The Cougars put together a 13-2 run to cut the lead under 10 points, 44-35 with 5:18 left.
A technical foul was called on Cougar coach Travis Johnston with 1:51 left to play, and when Dalton Decker hit 1-of-2 at the line, the Wildcats still held a nine-point lead, 52-43. They would not score again in regulation.
The Cougars closed out regulation by scoring nine straight, with McHenry scoring the tying basket with 19.8 seconds left. The Wildcats then had a chance to win the game with the final possession, but they turned the ball over and the Cougars missed a shot at the end and the game went into the overtime period.
Chaz Wilson opened the scoring for the Wildcats with a 10-footer, but McHenry tied things again with a lay-up with 1:51 left.
Decker then hit a pair of free throws to put the Wildcats back on top, but Spencer Sharp scored and was fouled with 1:15 left. His made free throw put the Cougars in front to stay, 57-56.
Wilson had the chance to put his team back on top with two free throws with 50.8 seconds left, but he missed both shots. Sharp then went to the line with 28.6 seconds left and he hit both shots to push the Cougar lead to three points, 59-56.
Sharp then came up with a steal and was fouled with 21.3 seconds left. He hit both charity tosses to give the Cougars a five-point lead, 61-56.
Wilson scored with 12.5 seconds left to cut it back to three, but Sharp was fouled again with 6.9 seconds left and when he hit both shots, the Cougars had completed the comeback with the win.
Wilson led the Wildcats with 23 points, while Decker and Pierce both finished with 10.
McHenry led the Cougars with a game-high 25 points, 21 of which came in the second half and the overtime, and he also led the team on the glass with eight rebounds. Sharp was right behind, finishing with 23 points, 18 of which came in the second half and the overtime period.
Nolan Shartzer scored nine points and added three rebounds, three assists and four steals. Higdon closed out the Cougar scoring with six points.
The Cougars drew Owensboro Catholic in the first round of the 3rd Region Tournament, and will face the Aces tonight at 7:45 in the Owensboro Sportscenter.
By Don Brown, Local Sports
Reach Don at donbrown@k105.com
