Both Ruston basketball teams played back-to-back games Monday and Tuesday night, with both teams beating Union and then Winnfield, and with all games on the road.
The games come in a road swing following the Hamilton Christian tournament last weekend.
For the Lady Bearcats, their Tuesday win against Union came after a final score of 56-33, and before that, a 67-54 win over Winnfield on Monday.
“I am very proud of the growth I’ve seen over the past two games,” Lady Bearcat head coach Meredith Graf said. “Two road games versus Winnfield and Union on back to back nights have each brought different challenges. Both were very physical and require a great deal of effort and focus on the defensive end, especially in boxing out. I think we are starting to get more comfortable with each other offensively and learning how we can each contribute. We will recover the rest of the week and then go support our boys at the dome!”
Against Union, junior Jaliyah McWain led Ruston with 20 points, while junior A’Nyia Moore added 11 points. Junior Zaccheya Jackson and McWain both scored 21 points against Winnfield, with sophomore Kiersynce McNeal adding 13 points.
The boys won their games; first against Winnfield Monday 76-61, and then Tuesday over Union 51-40.
“Our guys were a little tired,” Bearcat head coach Ryan Bon said. “The weekend tournament showed in how we moved around. It was our fifth game in six days. Good teams find a way to win these type of games. Give Union credit, they played well. And I’m happy for the win over Winnfield. We didn’t finish like we needed to, but it’s something to learn from.”
Against Union, senior Braylan McNeal finished with 27 points, while junior Jay Lillard added 14 points. The previous night, Lillard had led Ruston with 28 points, while McNeal added 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor. Junior Lonnie Dimmer finished with 15 points, while sophomore Joran Parker added 11,
