Sophomores lift Bobcats past Bryan JV
The Georgia Northwestern men’s basketball team was having plenty of fun Thursday night. And no two Bobcats were having more fun than Daniel Parrish and Darrius Fugh.
The sophomores shot the lights out of the Rossville Athletic Center in the first half against the Bryan College junior varsity Lions. They outscored the visitors by 10 points by themselves in the opening 20 minutes, setting the tone for a dominating 94-68 victory that gave the Bobcats’ a modest two-game winning streak and evened their record at 2-2 on the year.
“We always know we’re going to get points from Darrius,” head coach David Stephenson said. “But when he gets support, like he did tonight from Daniel, it really helps. I don’t even know if (Daniel) missed a shot in the first half.”
Fugh, who came into the game averaging 26.3 points a game this season, poured in 17 of his team-high 24 in the opening half. He was 7 of 9 from the floor, including 3 of 4 from behind the 3-point arc. Parrish also scored 17 first-half points, going 7 of 8 from the field and 3 of 4 from long distance.
The first-half shooting was a major difference-maker in the game. While the Lions managed 40.9 percent (9 of 22) from the floor, they were just 1 of 4 (25 percent) from the 3-point line. The Bobcats, on the other hand, went 20 of 34 from the floor in the opening half (58.8 percent) and 9 of 14 (64.3) behind the arc.
The 27-3 difference in perimeter points helped give Georgia Northwestern a comfortable 51-24 halftime lead.
The second half saw the Bobcats add to their advantage and rest its starters early. Two free throws by Clynt Bell at the 10-minute mark increased Georgia Northwestern’s lead to 70-42 and a nice drive to the hoop by Demonte Parker with just under 7:30 to go pushed the lead to 30.
The Bobcats’ biggest lead would be 37 points (92-55) with just over three minutes remaining before a final 13-2 push by the Lions got the deficit back under 30 by the time the final horn sounded.
“We came out tonight in some different defenses that we’ve been working on and did well with them,” Stephenson said. “We usually play with a lot of energy. Sometimes, though, we don’t play with a lot of smarts, but tonight we had plenty of both.”
Parrish finished 9 of 11 from the floor and racked up 21 points, while Parker and Alec Rattanaxay had eight points each. Rattanaxay also dished out six assists as 11 different Bobcats got in the scoring column. Fugh paced the team with 10 rebounds.
Grant Palmer had 17 points and eight boards for Bryan, while Tyler Steinmetz added 14 points in a losing effort.
Up next for the Bobcats will be a Tuesday (Dec. 6) home game against the junior varsity squad from Tennessee Wesleyan University out of Athens. It will be the first-ever meeting between the schools. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
“(Tennessee Wesleyan) will probably be one of the toughest tests we will have all year long,” Stephenson added. “That will be a good gauge for us going into the (Tim Walthour Memorial Invitational) next weekend. TWU is a big-time NAIA program, so it will really tell us where we’re at.
“My goal was to be at least 3-4 or better going into the Christmas break, so this was a big win tonight. If we can squeak out one in the (invitational), we’ll be well on our way. I saw lots of good things tonight. We got to play a lot of people and I like the energy this team has. If we can just put the smarts with it, we’ll be in good shape.”
The game with the Tennessee Wesleyan JV will be broadcast live on WAAK 94.7 FM out of Ringgold.
Bryan College JV women 73, Georgia Northwestern 48
The Lady Bobcats got off to a slow start in the night’s opener, and although they picked up the pace considerably in the second half - finishing with their highest point total of the season - they remained winless on the year with a loss to the Lady Lions.
Bryan led 11-2 after one quarter and 30-14 at the break. The Lady Bobcats went for 34 points in the second half, but couldn’t shoot their way out of the big first-half hole.
Katy Phillips ignored a painful shoulder and had a season-high 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Sprite Dyer just missed a doubledouble, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Jaqueline Ellis led Bryan with 22 points.
The Lady Bobcats (0-6) will not play again until the Tim Walthour Memorial Invitational. They open at 7 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 9 against Trinity Baptist from Florida and finish up at 2 p.m. on Saturday against Southern Crescent Tech.
Georgia Northwestern faced Trinity Baptist on Nov. 22 in Rossville and dropped a 42-33 decision.