01-08-15
BY JACK BULLOCK
DONGOLA – With Hardin County and Dongola both waiting several days before starting the new year of basketball, it took some time to shake loose some of the rust.

And it was the Cougars who got just enough offense early and survived a rally late by the host Demons to pick up a tough road win.

With the 65-61 victory, Hardin County improved to 11-4 on the season.

While Hardin County struggled shutting down Dongola, Coach Rodney Lane's team defense was sufficient.

Despite hitting just 7-of-15 free throws, the Cougars notched a long trip road win on a Thursday night over a team they bested 85-68 on November 25 at the Crab Orchard Thanksgiving Tournament.

Thursday night's contest was much closer as Coach Kevin Cox got his kids playing hard and produced nearly enough of a rally in the final quarter to pull out a victory.

In a game of scoring bursts, the Cougars made the most of their last one to separate the two clubs in the fourth quarter.

Highlighting the win was 22-points from senior guard BJ Austin and a 14-point, 11-rebound effort by sophomore forward Austin Seavers.

Senior guard Darrien Robinson chipped in nine points for Hardin County and Logan Conn tossed home seven.

“I thought that we were more patient tonight than we normally have been but their defense let us be that way,” said Coach Lane. “They didn't put any real pressure on us until late in the game, they packed it (zone) in and just let us shoot wide-open 3's and we didn't shoot it well tonight. We missed some shots that could have spread the lead up for us but we got a win.”

For Dongola, Coach Cox got the majority of the team's points from three starters.

Six-foot junior forward Kyle Cox held top honors in scoring with 24-points while teammates Uriah Holmes and Alex Zeshke (both seniors) netted 16 and 14-points respectively in what was nearly a come-from-behind victory.

Holmes is a 6-foot-5 senior who didn't play basketball the past two seasons after moving away to the metro-east Illinois area.

Coach Cox is seeing signs of improvement in both Holmes and the rest of his club.

“If we could have hit some of those 3's we might have blown things open for us. The big kid down low (Holmes) we are still working with him down low,” said Coach Cox. “He hadn't played in two years. He was with these kids in grade school and moved back here this season. I think it is all going to come together. They beat us by 20-some last time but we're coming around.”

For the Cougars the start of the contest saw the backcourt step forward with Robinson netting seven points in the opening quarter.

The 5-foot-9 senior hit a 3-pointer in the early going and then scored on a rebound basket for an 11-4 lead at the 2:45 mark, forcing a Dongola timeout.

Seavers, a 6-foot-2 forward, scored six points in the frame and closed the quarter with a score in the paint on a nice pass by Winters to make it 13-6.

In the first quarter, Seavers grabbed four of his rebounds and Hardin County committed just one turnover as they were in early control.

Dongola, fresh off a second place finish at their own Holiday Tournament, made a run in the second quarter and got within a point.

The Demons run began with Cox scoring twice in close to the basket.

Teammate Dalen Treat also added a score in a 6-0 run that got Dongola close at 17-16.

Turning up some defensive pressure in the next few minutes, the Cougars forced five-turnovers in the second quarter and took off on a run of their own.

Austin, Seavers and Winters all put up points.

Austin converted a conventional three-point play on a drive in the lane while being fouled by Holmes.

He closed the 9-0 run with another transition basket and the Cougars were in business at 26-16.

However Hardin County had some issues defensively closing down the baseline on this night.

Dongola managed to close the gap before the break with Treat nailing another shot on a baseline drive off an inbound pass and, on the next possession, Holmes made a head-fake to a Cougar defender and then took off toward the basket.

His drive down the right baseline resulted in a two-handed slam-dunk with :49 left.

A 3-pointer from Cox with :08 left before intermission cut the Demons' deficit to 27-23.

Hardin County needed a spark in the second half and it was Conn that delivered early.

His 3-pointer in the opening seconds got the Cougars some additional breathing room.

He also added a shot from the left wing for points and Austin added two more scores; on an inbound pass and a score near the basket on an assist from Winters for a 36-28 spread.

The victory for the Cougars was within reach in the third quarter as Coach Lane's team had chances to make it a blowout.

Austin scored 12 of his points in the third quarter with eight straight coming on a pair of 3-pointers and another drive to the bucket with a foul called on Cox.

Although he missed the free throw, Hardin County was comfortable at 48-38.

The Demons made a run to close out the quarter to get within five at the end.

Cox and Holmes each scored on drives to the goal and Zeschke converted a three-point play on a rebound where he made a head-fake and scored while coaxing a foul from Conn.

His made throw cut the Cougars lead down to just 48-45.

Austin took a nice pass from Tanner Dutton for a drive to the basket to get the lead back to five heading to the last eight minutes.

Having to sit on the bench due to foul issues in the middle parts of the game, Seavers stepped up in the final quarter.

On both ends of the floor.

Seavers grabbed seven of his rebounds in the final stanza and Austin added six-points in the quarter.

Two of the Seavers' boards turned into points.

His rebound of a missed free throw started a 10-4 run to give the Cougars a 60-51 lead.

The closest that the Demons got in the final minutes was five.

A Holmes basket an a pair of charities by Cox cut the lead to 62-57 with only :18.9 remaining.

Dutton and Robinson combined to hit 3-of-4 at the foul line to close out the win for HC.

The Cougars finished up 27-of-64 overall (42.1 percent) and were only 4-of-16 from beyond the 3-point line.

The hosts, who fell to 5-8 overall, hit 24-of-59 (40.6 percent) and 3-of-14 deep.

The Demons, behind nine rebounds from Holmes, held a 37-36 rebounding advantage.

The Cougars head back into action Friday night with a road trip to win less Thompsonville while Dongola has an eight-day hiatus before playing Cairo at home on January 16.

“We hadn't played since the Christmas tournament and we got out on the road and got a win,” said Coach Lane. “We were more patient tonight but we need to make better decisions and play with a bit more intensity. We have four games between now and the GEC tournament to find it.”