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The Bearcats went 2-1 at the Colquitt County post-Christmas basketball tournament, beating Worth County and Westwood, while narrowly losing to Valdosta.

The team kicked off the tournament with a win against Westwood 76-40 on Monday, December 28.

Bearcat AJ Grant was on fire, scoring 15 points, while Braxton Johnson scored 12. Other scorers throughout the game included Dialan Beard with 8 points, VJ Ervin with 7 points, Dylun Worlds with 6 points and Mark Taylor, Lathan Levens and Ashton Parris with 5 points. Ahmari Borden and Demetrius Chappell scored 4 points, while Dorrian Cooper netted three and Dontae Broadnax scored two points.

“We played really well against Westwood,” Coach Jeff Page said.

The following day, the Bearcats faced off against Valdosta, where they lost in the last five minutes of the game 52-55.

Despite the loss, Page said he was extremely proud of the defense.

“Our defense will be on every night,” he said.

Other Bearcats who contributed to the close game included Taylor, who scored 13 points throughout the game, Grant who scored nine, Levens who scored eight, Cooper who scored seven and Chappell who scored six.
Borden contributed five points, while Parris and Beard each netted two points.

The final game of the tournament was against Worth County, where the Bearcats took home another victory of 72-48.

According to Page, Worth County came out strong, scoring 27 points in the first quarter.

“We had to battle our way back,” he said.

Refusing to lose another game at the tournament, Cooper stepped on the court and made four three pointers back to back in the second quarter.

“We were still down three at the half, but Dorrian allowed us to make a comeback,” Page said. “You never know who is going to be on that night, but Dorrian was on.”

Throughout the game, Grant scored 16 points, while Taylor and Cooper scored 14. Beard scored 11 points. Other scorers included Chappell with six points, Levens and Borden with three points and Broadnax with two. Ervin scored one point.

The Bearcats will now begin region play, staring with Monroe.

Page said he believes the team is ready.

“I’m pleased with where we are at,” he said. “I feel good about our execution and right now I know we are living on defense.”

Key players in the region will include Taylor, Cooper and Grant, who Page said are the best Bearcat scorers right now.