Cougars’ Johnell on the spot Davis comes through with a double-double
Johnell Davis’ confidence didn’t waver.
The junior guard and his 21st Century teammates wobbled Friday night at East Chicago Central, but they never toppled.
The 6-foot-4 Davis had 18 points and 12 rebounds as the Cougars defeated the Cardinals 77-66.
21st Century (10-6) built a 23-point cushion midway through the third quarter before East Chicago (5-7) drew as close as seven midway through the fourth. But the Class A Cougars held off the 4A Cardinals.
“Beating a good team like that, a big school, it’s a big win,” Davis said. “We played hard; we played together, and we came out with a lot of energy.”
21st Century started quickly, pushing the ball and passing it effectively and then swarming East Chicago defensively. The Cougars led 41-23 at halftime and twice held a 23point lead in the third quarter.
Rodney Clemmons scored on a putback to bring the Cardinals within 62-55 with 4:05 left. But 21st Century scored backto-back baskets, including a dunk by Davis with 3:39 left.
“We just had to calm down,” Davis said. “We had to slow the ball down, just run our offense and pick up our defense.”
Triyonta Lomax and Takari Jones each scored 14 points for 21st Century. Jones made four 3-pointers, including three in the first quarter. Ryan Moss added 11 points off the bench.
21st Century coach Rodney Williams liked his team’s balance.
“We shared the ball; we spread it around,” Williams said. “The scorers scored, the rebounders rebounded, the passers passed. Everybody contributed.”
Clemmons scored a game-high 24 points for East Chicago, including 14 in the fourth to help rally the Cardinals. Louis Williams added 20 points and Chris Okeke had 11.
21st Century and East Chicago were playing for the first time.
With only one senior on 21st Century ’s ro st e r, Williams has challenged his team. He already was looking forward to Tuesday’s game against Kouts, ranked No. 5 in Class A.
“We wanted to make sure we had a very, very tough schedule,” Williams said. “We have one of the toughest schedules in our class, if not the state. We knew we were going to take some losses early in the season, but we play for sectionals, regionals, semistate. It really helps us down the line.
“So we’re happy with our progress. Our record might not show it, but we’re getting better — we’re doing nothing but getting better.”