By Malcolm Butler
Cedar Creek struggled defensively for the vast majority of the night as the Cougars fell 72-66 to Castor Tuesday night at The Brickhouse.
Jonathan Warren scored 28 points, including 10 in the third quarter, to lead the Tigers to the road win. Warren’s effort offset a 36-point outing by Jake Doan for the Cougars.
The 72 points are the most surrendered by the Cougars this season.
The Cougars (10-6) trailed 16-15 at the end of the opening period despite a pair of three-pointers by Doan and five points from Jack Bell.
Castor then netted 23 points in the second quarter as the Cougars struggled to stop the Tigers (7-7) as Bell and Doan once against combined for 11 points in the stanza. The Cougars trailed 39-31 at the half after a steal and layup by the Tigers at the buzzer.
Cedar Creek fought hard to get back into the game in the third quarter as Doan converted a conventional three-point play with 3:40 to play to close the deficit to 47-46. Two possessions later, Doan drained a three-pointer to tie the game at 49-49.
However, Castor continued to score from all three levels and closed the quarter on a 12-6 run to lead 61-55 entering the fourth quarter.
The Cougars were never able to make a true run in the final eight minutes as Castor maintained at least a six point lead throughout the frame in picking up the win.
Bell added 15 points for Creek while Connor Johnson chipped in with 10.
The Cougars host Quitman on Friday.
