Mohawks fall to Cougars at PHS

Mohawk forward Jon Perkins beats the double team for two points in action Saturday night against Rector. Also pictured for the Tribe is Zach Redmon (left). (Times photo/Tim Blair) [Click to enlarge]

In what could arguably be the senior boy's championship for Clay County, the Piggott Mohawks hosted the Rector Cougars Saturday night and dropped a 13 point non-conference loss. The Tribe had three players score in double figures on the night, but couldn't handle a big Rector third quarter as the Cougars took the win 65-52. The Mohawks also suffered from a disparity at the charity stripe, as the Cougars attempted nearly twice as many free throws on the game.

Having beaten the Corning Bobcats twice this year, a victory over their former conference rivals from Rector would be a moral victory for the Tribe in what has been a difficult year. But the Cougars, coming off a whipping at the hands of the EPC Warriors, and their star Ky Madden, showed great resiliency in posting the road win for Coach Matt Mills.

In the early going of the contest the two teams played equally, trading baskets throughout the first period with neither squad able to gain an advantage. By the end of the first period the score stood 17-16 in favor of the Mohawks.

During the second period the two teams again swapped baskets, although the Cougars did begin to show some dominance in the paint. By the halftime break the visitors were up by two points, as the Cougars took a 29-27 lead into the locker room.

The true difference in the ballgame came in the third quarter, as the Cougars came out fired-up and outscored the Tribe 19-7 in the period. By the start of the fourth quarter Rector was up 48-34, and the Mohawks were never able to battle their way back into the contest.

Leading the way for the Mohawks in scoring were Hayden McMillon and Alek Samples with 13 points each, while Tanner Murray finished with 11. Also scoring were Jon Perkins with 7, Spencer Coomer with 6 and Zac Redmon with 2. As a team the Mohawks were 10 of 16 from the free throw line and the team made six 3-point baskets on the game. Meanwhile, the Cougars were led by Zack Burlison with 22 points and Tyler Kirklin with 18. As a team Rector visited the charity stripe 31 times on the contest, and converted on 16 of those attempts.

The Mohawks were scheduled to host the Harrisburg Hornets Tuesday evening at PHS in conference action, and will visit the Brookland Bearcats this Friday, Jan. 29. They're scheduled to host Earle next Tuesday, Feb. 2 and will visit the Manila Lions on Friday, Feb. 5 to close out the conference schedule.