Boys' Basketball: Cougars race by Saints, 86-59

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on December 3, 2016 10:21 PM

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In the wild, cougars can reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour.

True to its animal mascot, Goldsboro appeared to be sprinting twice as fast in Friday's game against Southern Wayne.

The frenetic pace, combined with the Cougars' shooting and slashing ability, ultimately resulted in a dominant 86-59 victory over the Saints at Norvell T. Lee Gym.

Friday night's win was Goldsboro's second victory over SW this season. The Cougars defeated the Saints 73-57 in Dudley on Nov. 23.

"Practice like you're going to play," said Cougars' head coach Russell Stephens. "Our practices are sometimes tougher than our games. Our kids really get after it. When you're playing fast like that, you have to practice like it."

In the opening minutes, SW matched Goldsboro's speed and held a 12-7 lead midway through the first quarter.

Then the Cougars smacked the Saints with a shooting barrage. Goldsboro's first three buckets of the second quarter were from beyond the arc. Those long balls -- one by Isaiah Cogdell and two by Jarrod Scott -- helped spark a 32-11 run in the first half.

"We do certainly have guys that can shoot the basketball," Stephens said. "But we also have guys who can get to the basket. If you noticed, I would say it was a combination. We really don't have a true post player. Most of our guys are face-to-basket players."

Not much improved for the Saints' defense in the third and fourth quarter. 

Goldsboro outscored Southern Wayne 45-31 in the second half and hit four more three-pointers. The Cougars finished the game with 10 three-pointers from six different players.

"We didn't close out like we should've closed out," said Saints' head coach Dwight Smith. "We worked on it in practice, but we just didn't get it done tonight...We would like to see us compete a little better...We'll go back to the gym and work on it, and we'll be back."

Jaryan Hargis led the Cougars with 16 points. Isaiah Wilder and Christian Bullock each chipped in 14. The Saints' offense was headed by Daari Walton, who tallied 16 points. Rakileen Butler scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds.

With three consecutive wins under the belt, Stephens said he likes the current position of his squad.

To Stephens, the season will be a marathon, but each individual game will be an all-out sprint.

"We're going to make some mistakes turning the ball over," Stephens said. "But we play a lot of kids on a consistent basis. And what we're betting is our 10 can beat your six or seven, and that proved true for us tonight."