RINER, Va. (TVR) – The Covington Cougars basketball program came to an end on Tuesday night following a 75-45 loss in the first-round of the Class 1, Region C Tournament to the Auburn Eagles.
The Cougars lost to something they knew so well, and that is a well-balanced offense.
The Eagles were led by four players who scored in double figures. Bryce Gill paced the Eagles with a game-high 14 points, while Coahan Gordon, Michael Wilson and Samuel Duncan each had 13 points for the winners.
The Cougars had seen that kind of balance all season long within their own team. Some nights it was Purcel Turner leading the way or it was Jayden Sammons, or Desmond Jordan, or Dylan Williams, Hayden Rodgers, J’yon Smith, etc. It was a collective unit that paced the team to 16 wins because of a well-balanced group.
Tuesday night though was just the Eagles’ night.
Sammons and Turner each scored 12 points in the loss to the Eagles.
The Eagles jumped out to a 24-7 lead early into the second quarter.
With 5:30 left to go in the first half, Smith jumpstarted a 15-8 scoring run for the Cougars who cut the lead down to 12 at halftime.
An 8-2 scoring stretch for the Eagles to open the third period stretched the lead to 18 points at 42-24.
The Eagles would go on to outscore the Cougars 21-10 in a pivotal third quarter, as they took a 55-32 lead into the fourth.
The Cougars finished the season with three players averaging double figures scoring. Turner scored 345 points in 26 games while averaging 13.3 points per game (PPG). Meanwhile, Smith scored 288 points in 24 games while averaging 12 ppg, and Jordan scored 266 points in 23 games while averaging 11.6 ppg.
Team 1 2 3 4 Ttl
CHS 6 16 10 13 45
AHS 20 14 21 20 75
Cougars Scoring: Sammons 12. Turner 12, Smith 7, Jordan 6, Ayden Weinger 6, Williams 2
Eagles Scoring: Gill 14, Duncan 13, Gordon 13, Wlson 13, Drew Royal 6, Jaxon Warren 6, Andrew Tickle 4, Nick Millirons 4, Brady Hale 2
