Clear Creek squared off against the Fannin County Rebels on the basketball court last Monday.
The Lady Cats played host while the Bobcats were on the road.
The seventh-grade Lady Cats endured their first loss (39-19) of the season as the Rebels were able to handle Clear Creek’s defensive pressure. In the eighth-grade contest, Fannin opted to spread the court and used crisp passes to attack CCMS in a 60-21 win.
The seventh-grade Bobcats also found themselves on the losing end for the first time, 52-37. The eighth-grade Cats’ struggles continued against the Rebels. Scoring six and five points in the first and third quarters, respectively, was enough for Fannin, who earned a 54-41 win.
Lady Cats
In the girls seventh-grade game, Fannin’s defense was able to limit the Cats’ ball movement, which led to some offensive struggles.
“Offensively, we got stuck on one side of the court and have to do a better job of swinging the ball and making the defense shift. We’ll go back and watch the film, learn from it, and keep getting better,” said assistant coach Les McDaniel.
Lady Cat points were scored by Alley Phillips and Mary Grace Jones (four each). Kensey Pritchett, Mak Taylor, Lola Howard, Rosie Everett and Toryn Adams (two apiece), and Laney Martin scored one.
Fannin built a formidable lead when the older players took the floor, and the Cats were tasked with playing from behind.
“They’ve got some shooters and filled it up in a hurry,” said McDaniel. “Once again, we’ll watch the film, learn from this and make adjustments. We also got out rebounded and have to do a better job of boxing out, maintaining contact and then pulling the ball. Too many times, we got caught watching the shot. The best way to get over a game like this is to get back in the gym and get back to work and that’s what we’ll do.”
Kenley Thompson led CCMS with eight points, Sarah Dale added seven and Taylor scored six.
Bobcats
The seventh-grade game was played closely in the first half. CCMS found success from beyond the three-point arc as Andrew Chastain made two threes and Silas West and Noah Rice hit one apiece.
CCMS trailed 27-24 at the half, which FCMS extended over the final two quarters. Clear Creek made only five shots from the field in the second half, and the Rebels came away with a 15-point win.
Chastain led the way with 13 points, West Scored 12, Rice had 10 and Cash Rogers added two.
Inconsistent offense led to the Cats’ demise when the eighth graders took the court. After scoring six points in the first, CCMS managed to only fall behind 23-18 at the half. However, after a five-point third quarter, FCMS extended its lead to 36-23.
While the Bobcats had their best quarter in the fourth, they were unable to cut any further into the Rebels’ advantage.
Behind Douglas Callihan with 12 points were Bobcats Jase McCollum and Peyton Chancey (eight), Mason West (seven), Chaz Curtis (four) and Preston McVey (two).
The seventh-grade Bobcats and Lady Cats are both 3-1, while their older counterparts each have a 1-3 record.