The Bearcats got a chance to show off what they’re made of this season in Thursday’s scrimmage game against the Early County Bobcats. From the looks of things, The Bearcats are ready to score plenty of points after their 82-72 victory.
But the Bearcats blew a 20-point lead late in the fourth period, giving the Bobcats hope of making a comeback win.
“We’re a young team,” said Bearcats head coach Rickey McCullough. “They started pressing the ball. We got in foul trouble, they started making free throws and we got a little frustrated.”
McCullough is still working on finding a player rotation that works, he said. Every player got to have time on the court, which meant younger players getting valuable experience, but also making rookie mistakes.
“I thought when I put my starters back in, we were able to run at them and they took back control of the game,” McCullough said about regaining a comfortable point cushion.
Sophomore center Tyree Crump led the team with 22 points scored.
“I just try to make my team better,” Crump said. “When it’s time to take over, I step in and do my job. But we just got to get better overall, with driving, shooting, passing, talking to one another, everything.”
Crump was also eight for 12 on free throw attempts and had four offensive rebounds.
“I got to the free throw line pretty well,” he said.
Crump took command of the team Thursday night, enforcing strong communication with his players and rallying the team.
Senior forward Dominique Douglas helped the Bearcats score when the Bobcats were trailing close in the fourth quarter. A couple of wide-open lay ups and a dunk put Douglas on the map as an aggressive playmaker for Bainbridge.
With 18 points under his belt and six for nine on free throws, Douglas shows he’s ready to push the Bearcats to as many victories as possible
“Whatever I have to do to help these boys win, I’m going to do it,” Douglas said. Looking back on the game, he also noted a few things he would have to work on personally. “I’m working on my passing and rebounding, and cutting down on turnovers.”
McCullough said he liked his depth after seeing everyone play Thursday.
“We scored the ball well,” he said. “But we’re definitely turning the ball over too much. That’s because we’re young and it’s early in the year. We’ve got to tighten our defense up and work on some things.”