Bulldogs maintain scrappy start to season
♦ Cedartown’s thrilling region victory precedes a pair of defeats on the road.
Cedartown basketball’s scrappy start to the season continued last week.
The Bulldogs won just one of their three matchups but showed promise and grit in each of the tight contests.
The Bulldogs picked up their second region win of the season on Tuesday, Dec. 14, at home.
After blowing an early lead, CHS roared back late to shock Southeast Whitfield (4-3). Cedartown won a thriller, downing the Raiders 57-56 thanks to some late heroics from MJ Holiday and Ronald Knight.
As expected, senior guard MJ Holiday showed out at home. He accounted for 10 points in the final period and finished with 22 against the Raiders. Knight was the only other Cedartown scorer in double digits, as he finished with ten points on Tuesday.
Senior center Mario Maldonado added five points while Jordan Johnson scored four points. DJ Whatley finished with three points, Billy Darden converted one basket, and Xavier Holiday hit one free throw in the win.
On Thursday, the Bulldogs made the short trip down Highway 278 to play the Spring Garden Panthers (4-0). The sixth-ranked team in Class 2A raced out to a big first half lead, but a huge third period handed Cedartown a 40-39 lead going into the final frame.
However, CHS could not maintain their offensive prowess, falling to the Panthers 56-44 on the road. MJ Holiday led the way with 17 points while Knight scored 11.
Xavier Holiday added five points, Darden scored four in Alabama, and senior Jordan Johnson finished with three points on Thursday evening. Grant Dempsey and Whatley scored two points each in the loss.
A week full of basketball action concluded on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs played another non-region road game, this time against Class 6A power Carrollton (4-4).
Despite scoring just six points in the first half, the Bulldogs found more offensive success in the third and fourth periods. A late rally fell short, though,
and the Trojans walked away with a 48-38 win.
Nearly everyone on the roster scored against Carrollton over the weekend. MJ Holiday had nine points, Xavier Holiday finished with six points, and Tony Ware scored five points in the fourth quarter. Knight added four points while Darden and Calvin Diamond scored three points each.
Quinlan Cothron, Logan Walters, Whatley, and Johnson each scored two points
in the loss in Carroll County.
Now 2-3 on the season, Cedartown will enjoy a week off before heading into
tournament play next week. For the second straight year the Bulldogs will take part in the annual Hilburn-Patterson Haralson County Invitational Tournament, which begins on Dec. 28 in Tallapoosa.
CHS will play Temple at 1 p.m. in their first-round game, and second- and thirdround matchups will follow on Dec. 29 and Dec. 30.