Clarke Central High School boys varsity basketball player Jaiquez Smith, a senior, plays in the Cedar Shoals High School versus CCHS varsity basketball game on Jan. 25. According to CCHS boys varsity basketball head coach Andrew McIntyre, the team needs to focus and prepare better in order to succeed. “(We have to) prepare better in practice during the week and just come to the game ready to play. We’re not as disciplined as we need to be right now, so that’s something we’re going to work on. We just have to be better,” McIntyre said. Photo by Krista Shumaker
On Jan 25, the Cedar Shoals High School boys varsity basketball team beat Clarke Central High School for the second time this season, with a final score of 66-56.
The Clarke Central High School boys varsity basketball team lost to Cedar Shoals High School on Jan. 25 with a score of 56-66.
According to CCHS boys varsity basketball head coach Andre McIntyre, the team started off well holding a narrow lead to halftime with a score of 27-25.
“We started off with a lot of intensity. We played good defense early in the game and moved the ball and made some shots, so we got a good start,” McIntyre said.
Despite this start, CCHS started to fall behind at the end of the third quarter with a score of 35-44 leading to a final defeat of 56-66.
“We didn’t come out aggressively in the third quarter and they went on a 10-0 run to take the lead. (This) put us on our heels, but we responded and cut it to two and three points (difference) several times in the fourth quarter, but we had some untimely turnovers,” McIntyre said.
Clarke Central High School boys varsity basketball player Tracy Hill, a senior, guards a Cedar Shoals High School player during the CSHS versus CCHS basketball game on Jan. 25. CCHS previously lost to CSHS on Jan. 4, and CCHS varsity basketball cheerleader Gabrielle Jones was hoping CCHS would make a comeback and win. “I’m just excited about the rematch, because I feel like we was cheated last time– we lost by one point, so we gotta prove ourselves,” Jones said. “I hope that this game, we’re able to show them that they’re not better than us and that we can beat them by one point.” Photo by Krista Shumaker
CCHS junior Jaavan Mack, a guard for the CCHS boys varsity basketball team also believes that the reason for their loss was due to their lack of intensity during the second half of the game.
“When we got down by two (points), we couldn’t get the lead (back). I think we couldn’t get a momentum change,” Mack said. “We wanted (to win) this game so bad. I know we fell short but we had good energy throughout the whole game (and) good intensity.”
CCHS 2015 alumnus Isaiah Sims attended the game to watch his friends play and experience the Cedar-Central rivalry he remembered.
“I’m really excited. (I) really just want to see what the team looks like, to see what kinda new talent they got this year (and) to have fun,” Sims said.
According to Mack, the team needs to focus on preparing better for upcoming games and not let a small lead take them over.
“We need to be perfect through all phases of the game. In the first half, we were doing pretty good on defense and good intensity, but then we started slacking,” Mack said. “Once we get a lead, we start blowing it a little bit– we get too comfortable, so we just got to keep playing the whole game.”
