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Hoop-Rah For Cougars In Wins And Losses

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By DAREK SHARP

dsharp@tampatrib.com

Published: December 31, 2008

PLANT CITY - They may not have won the Alonso Holiday Classic, but the Durant High Cougars feel like they are gaining plenty as a team these days.

Already on a high from winning a down-to-the-wire game with Sarasota Riverview, Durant claimed two more close victories and finished as runner-up to Wharton in the boys basketball tournament held at Alonso.

"We did a lot of very good things here," Durant head coach Jeff Shotwell said after his team fell 59-47 in the Dec. 23 championship contest. "Right after losing to Wharton, they probably don't want to hear that; they're probably still a little upset, but I'm proud of them."

Certainly the Cougars are getting good at learning how to play in and, more often than not, win tight games. On Dec. 19, the Cougars took over first place in District 6A-8 when they edged visiting Sarasota Riverview 60-58.

A.J. Garden hit a shot at the buzzer for the victory.

That game came on the eve of the Alonso event, but Durant did not slow down and went 2-1 there to improve its overall record to 9-2 for the season.

Shotwell particularly was happy with how well his team hung with Wharton in the Alonso finals despite missing two starters.

Guard Jordan Mitchell was out of town on vacation while senior forward Denaldi Bradley was out with a toe injury suffered in the tournament semifinals.

That forced several reserves into action, and brothers Tyson and Mason Holland, Mike Lucas and Sean McChord all logged significant time against Wharton.

The Cougars started strong and led 26-21 at halftime, but went cold not scoring in the third quarter until 1:08 remained. Wharton took a 33-30 lead into the fourth quarter and executed its offense well to pull away.

Tournament MVP Xavier Owens, a sophomore for the Wildcats, had the put-away hoop with a slam-dunk after a steal as Durant was attempting to cut the margin back to three points.

Andre Nation, a sophomore who is emerging as a Cougar team leader, had 16 points to earn a spot on the all-tournament team. Nation came up with several phenomenal blocks defensively on unsuspecting Wildcats.

In the semifinals, Durant came out on the winning end of a pulsating matchup with Palm Harbor, 69-67 in overtime. Garden scored 22 points but had the wherewithal to dish off to Dexter Barge for the winning basket at the end of overtime.

Nation shut down Palm Harbor's Tyler Stevenson after being asked to guard the 6-foot-6 senior in the second half. Stevenson had 24 points in the first half but only four the rest of the way.

"These close games are helping us a lot," Barge said. "Beating Sarasota Riverview was big, and then these games at Wharton are going to help us down the road. Because at the district tournament, we're probably going to have to win like that."

Durant trailed Palm Harbor 56-48 entering the fourth quarter before rallying. The Cougars beat Wesley Chapel in the first round of the tournament with Thomas pouring in 21 points and Barge adding 12.

The Cougars were set for action in the Big Blue Classic in Winter Haven last weekend. Regular season play resumes when Durant hosts rival Plant City on Jan. 9.

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