Cougars Fall Short in Comeback at Highland Tournament
Lewistown, MO – The Highland Cougars fell just short in their attempted comeback against the Clark County Indians, as they fell 0-2 in the Highland Tournament.
The Cougars didn’t do themselves many favors, turning the ball over 15 times in the first half and falling into a 32-22 deficit at the break. “We had 15 turnovers in the first half; you can’t do that. We built up too large a deficit. Says coach Matt Thomas.
The Cougars, however, came out strong in the second half. Clark County would extend its lead, but the Cougars found momentum late in the third to bring it within 46-40. The fourth would see Clark County hold the Cougars to 10 points. But the Cougars would again rally to get the game as close as two points with 1.5 seconds to play. However, Clark County made a free throw to extend its lead to three points. The Cougars would charge down the field and get a tying shot up, but it did not land. Falling to the Indians 58-55.
Junior Cason Bliven led the night with 17 points. The Indians held Briscoe Post to only five points, all from the free throw line. However, other Cougars stepped up in the scoring. Freshman Cooper Hinton stepped up with 12 points. Sophomore Brighton Johnson also contributed 9 points on the night. “We had some great minutes off the bench, Cooper played outstanding, Brock Schneider came in, and he gave us great minutes.” Coach Thomas has also discussed how far Brighton Johnson has come. “He’s come a long way, playing harder, and that was a big thing, how hard you play will dictate a lot of your minutes.”
The Cougars will return to action on Friday or Saturday, depending on the preliminary rounds of the Highland Tournament, which is a six-team round-robin tournament this year.
POINTS LEADERS
Highland: 10, 12, 18, 15
Cason Bliven – 17
Cooper Hinton – 12
Brighton Johnson – 9
Clark County: 18, 14, 14, 12
Corrick Hunziker – 17
Kai Binsbacher – 13
Kole Ross – 10
