By Kyle Roberts and Malcolm Butler
Ruston High and Cedar Creek found themselves in a cross-city matchup Friday evening at the Ruston Sports Complex that saw the Bearcats get a 67-24 win over the Cougars.
“They were locked in in winning last night against a pretty good Quitman team Thursday,” Ruston head coach Ryan Bond said. “I think they’re a really good team for Class B; that gave us some confidence. We just got locked in all day after school, and they get there, sit together, and we warm up well. We were just unselfish, and overall their body language all day was good.”
The Bearcats hopped out to an early 20-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and next looked back.
Freshman KeShun Malcolm led Ruston’s scorers with 18 points, while senior Lonnie Dimmer finished with 17.
For the Cougars, junior Jack Bell led the way with 13 points.
“Ruston did a great job tonight holding our offense in check,” Cedar Creek head coach Lance Waldron said. “After their football team wins a state championship next week and they get all their guys on the court they will be one of the best 5A teams in the state.”
Bond was very complimentary of Waldron and the Cougar program postgame.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Cedar Creek because of Coach Waldron, of course, and our relationship,” Bond sad. “I know Lance from we played against each other in high school, so I appreciate what he’s done with their program. And they’ve improved. They’ve got some good hard nosed players. He’s got a lot of kids coming back, and they’ll have one of our transfers playing there next year. They’re going to be a solid program.”
