HANCEVILLE, Ala. – The Cullman Bearcats and the Good Hope Raiders were on the court at Tom Drake Coliseum Saturday to compete in this year’s Veteran’s Day Classic and both local squads returned home with wins. Cullman won a close game over Plainview 51-46 and in their first game of the season, the Good Hope Raiders lit up the scoreboard on their way to a 99-41 win over Winston County.
Cullman 51 – Plainview 46 (varsity boys)
Cullman got on the scoreboard first on a three-point play by Sam Duskin, then with 5:50 left to go in the quarter, Colton Echols put in a floater to make it 5-0. Plainview countered with a 9-0 run of their own to take a 9-5 lead, but Jake Dorough put in a shot in the paint to cut it to 9-7 with 2:23 left to go in the opening period. Echols knocked down another floater, then Dorough drilled a three from the top of the key to give the Bearcats a 12-9 lead going into the second quarter.
Evan Wilson put in a hook shot to give Cullman a 14-9 lead early in the period, then a three-point play by Echols, later followed by a pair of Duskin free throws, pushed their lead to 19-9 almost halfway through the second quarter. A made basket by the Bears cut it to 21-13, but Echols put in another floater and later added a free throw to give the Bearcats a 24-13 lead. A pair of threes by Plainview quickly made it a 24-19 game and later added a shot in the paint to cut it to 25-21 at the half.
The Bears hit a three to start the third quarter as that made it a 25-24 game. Dorough put in a shot to make it 27-24, but Plainview scored the next five straight points to take a 29-27 lead with 5:14 left to go in the third period. The Bears held a 31-29 lead late in the quarter, but Gray Hopper and Duskin each hit a free throw to tie the game up at 31. Plainview broke the tie with a basket in the paint, but Sam Dorough drilled a three from the right wing, then Echols added a free throw, to give Cullman a 35-33 lead going into the final period.
Plainview scored the first five points of the quarter to take a 38-35 lead, but one of their players got hit with a technical foul, and Brodie Banister hit a pair from the line to cut it to 38-37. Later on, Duskin hit a driving layup, then Wilson drilled a pair of free throws, as Cullman now held a 41-38 lead. The lead changes didn’t stop there, though, as the Bears hit a pair of free throws, then a shot in the paint, to take a 42-41 lead with 3:22 left to go in the game.
Another technical foul was called on one of the Bears’ players, and Jake Dorough knocked down both free throws to give Cullman a 43-42 lead with 2:31 left to go in the contest. Echols drilled a short-range jumper to make it a 45-42 game, then Duskin split from the line to give Cullman a 46-42 game with 40 seconds left to go in the game. Plainview cut it to 48-46, but the Bearcats sealed the game at the line, as Jake Dorough hit two free throws, and Echols added one as well, as Cullman ended up collecting a 51-46 win over Plainview.
Echols finished with 15 points for Cullman. Jake Dorough added 11 points, and Duskin ended up with nine points.
Cullman will travel to take on Greenville Tuesday.
Good Hope 99 – Winston County 41 (varsity boys)
Good Hope didn’t waste any time getting out to a quick lead in their game against Winston County, as they scored the first 19 points of the game. Five different players scored during that run. Winston County got on the scoreboard with 3:16 left to go in the opening period, but the Raiders continued their red-hot shooting in the quarter. Dakota Overton drilled a three, then a layup by Isaiah Turner, a rebound and put-back by Weston Hancock, and five straight points by K’mal Bell gave Good Hope a 32-2 lead. The Raiders held a commanding 34-3 lead after one period.
The scoring slowed down a little bit in the second quarter, but a three by Hancock and baskets by Cone and Jacob Haynes made it a 45-10 game. Bell put in a shot from long-range to give the Raiders a 48-15 lead at the half. Eight different Raider players found the scoring column in the first half.
The second half was more of the same, as the third quarter saw three dunks, one each from Cone, Malin, and Hancock, as Good Hope continued to build their lead. The lead grew to over 50, as the Raiders went into the fourth quarter with a commanding 78-27 lead. A hot clock was run for the entire period, as Good Hope would go on to completely roll past Winston County 99-41.
Every player scored at least one point in the game. Bell led the way for Good Hope with 22 points. Cone added 19 points. Haynes ended up with 15 points. Hancock and Malin each put in 11 points, while Tyler Byrd added 10.
Good Hope will head home to face New Hope in their home opener Friday night.
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