by Malcolm Butler
Lady Cougars 60, Plain Dealing 37
Alivia Lee scored a career-high 22 points and Ryan Avery added 15 points to lead Cedar Creek to a 60-37 road win over Plain Dealing in District 1-1A action Friday night.
The Lady Cougars (22-3, 4-0) jumped out to a double digit lead in the first quarter and were never really threatened while staying undefeated in league action. It was also head coach Katie Hall’s teams third victory over the past five days.
“Playing our third game this week after a long week of school on a Friday night, I expected our team to be a little flat,” said Hall. “We came out of the gate missing a lot of 3’s. We got a lot of good looks but our shots weren’t going in.”
Ryan scored nine of her 15 points in the opening frame as Creek led 19-8 through the opening eight minutes of action. Lee led the Lady Cougars in the second quarter, netting five points and helping her team extend its lead to 30-13 at the break.
Cedar Creek utilized a full-court defense, forcing Plain Dealing (12-12, 2-1) into turnover after turnover, and helping the Lady Cougars build their lead.
“Fortunately we were able to capitalize on their turnovers and score some buckets in transition,” said Hall. “I am very grateful to get a district victory on the road. Hopefully we can get some good rest this weekend and get ready to get back to work next week.”
Lee and Mallory Smith combined for 14 points in the third quarter as the Lady Cougars continued to build on their advantage, holding a 49-24 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Cedar Creek hit five three-pointers, three by Smith, while the Lady Cougars were 6-of-8 at the free throw line with Lee doing most of the damage from the stripe (5-of-6).
The Lady Cougars, winners of 10 straight, will host Haynesville Tuesday before traveling to Lincoln Prep Friday.
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Cougars
It’s been a rough week for Cedar Creek.
Already playing without senior Jack Bell due to illness, the Cougars lost its leader Cannon Robbins for the rest of the season when he injured both elbows in Tuesday night’s loss to Ringgold.
However, Cedar Creek (12-5, 2-1) overcame the adversity on Friday night in a 59-17 road win over Plain Dealing (0-17, 0-3) in District 1-1A action.
“We had a good night,” said Creek head coach Lance Waldron. “Everyone got to play and played as a team on both offense and defense.”
Jake Terry scored 25 points and Brett Bell added 14 points to lead the Cougars, who improved to 12-5, 2-1 in district play.
The Cougars raced out to a 23-3 lead after the first quarter as Terry netted 13 points in the opening stanza while Bell added six. Both players scored six points in the second quarter as Creek extended the advantage to 39-9.
Cedar Creek was never threatened in the second half.
Waldron addressed the loss of Robbins for the season and the fact the Cougars will be playing short-handed the rest of the year, including missing senior Jack Bell due to illness.
“The loss of Cannon for the remainder of the season is devastating,” said Waldron. “He has already been through quite a bit to get the opportunity to play and then to have a season ending injury during his senior year is tough.
“Cannon and his family have been amazing team players ever since they arrived on campus. They are always supportive with a positive attitude…. a coach’s dream! We will not be able to replace Cannon and what he brought to the team both on and off the court so we have to go with a “next player up” mentality. The last two practices have been very competitive and the rest of the team has stepped up.”
Waldron did say the team hopes Bell will be back in time for the postseason.
“Jack Bell is another starter out right now but we hope to have him back for the playoffs,” said Waldron.
