It took some time, but the Cougar basketball team was finally able to put one in the win column Wednesday with a 59-55 win over the Fort Chiswell Pioneers in the First Community Bank Tournament at Fort Chiswell High School.
The Cougars have had a tough start to their season. Before the first game, junior Jele Green went out with an injury. Then, during the season opener at Carroll County, junior Lane Nester went down with an injury in the first half.
With those two key players out, the Cougars fell to Carroll County 48-69. The Cougars hosted the Cavaliers in their second game of the season, falling 62-69 with a much better effort. Game three was a 57-64 road loss to Christiansburg. The Cougars traveled to Radford and fell 34-64, then lost 49-98 at Princeton High School. A road game at Patrick Henry resulted in a 29-68 loss. In the opening round of the tournament Tuesday, the Cougars fell to George Wythe 58-66 despite the return to action of Green and Nester.
Wednesday, the Cougars put together a much better effort. Leading 31-27 at the halftime break, Pulaski County outscored the Pioneers 12-10 in the third to extend their lead to 43-37 heading into the final period. The Pioneers made up some ground in the final period, outscoring the Cougars 18-16, but it wasn’t enough as the Cougars won 59-55.
Nester and Green led the way for the Cougars with 12 points each. Marcus Reed and Tootie O’Dell added eight points each. Horton and Chandler Hollins scored six points each. Kyle O’Neal scored the final five for Pulaski County.
Nathan Norris led the Pioneers with 13 points. Logan Selfe scored 11 points. Brady Kelly and Braydon Billings added eight points each.
The Cougars are scheduled to play Thursday against Carroll County.
On the JV side of things, the Cougars have been performing well and currently hold a record of 6-2 after a 56-46 win over Fort Chiswell Wednesday. The JV team will play in the championship game of the JV tournament Thursday.