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Cougars end drought at Morehouse
Johnny Luse / Sports Editor
Atlanta, GA—The Columbus State University Cougars headed into Atlanta hoping to break out of a funk that has engulfed them since the beginning of the new year. They knew they would have no easy task, though, as they faced a Morehouse team that had won three straight as well as four of their last five.
The result was a hard-fought 94-88 victory for the Cougars.
The frigid weather was no comparison to the heat of the action inside Forbes Arena. The two squads combined for 93 first-half points and played the first 20 minutes at a torrid pace.
Morehouse took advantage of a Shawn Strong foul in the backcourt with 3.7 seconds left and pulled ahead 47-46 on a pair of free throws by Jesse
Peeples.
The half saw the Cougars lead 32-21 at the 9:51 mark after a pair of free throws by Malachi Moss. Moss, who elected earlier in the day not to accept a red-shirt year, came off the bench to score 10 points in the half.
Morehouse would storm back to take the halftime lead.
In the second half, the two teams kept the same pace, but the Cougars managed to get a lead and hold on for a barrage of long-range jumpers in the final two minutes. The Cougars built a small lead early, but the Maroon Tigers took a 63-62 lead on a pair of free throws by Jerone Dodd with 11:23 to play.
After that, the Cougars were able to build a lead of as much as 12 points on a pair of occasions in the last six minutes.
Leading 89-77, Morehouse turned up the pressure and began launching treys, cutting the lead to six at one point. The Cougars were able to hit just enough free throws down the stretch to nail down the win.
“This was just a good win on the road for us,” said CSU head coach Herbert Greene. “We had several people give good individual efforts tonight, and hopefully this will get us back on the right track.”
The Cougars placed six players in double-digits, led by Travis Crutcher’s 17 points. Maulvi Lewis followed with 16 points and tied for the game-high with 11 rebounds.
Quincy Richardson and Chris Conklin tossed in 12 points each, while Shawn Strong and Malachi Moss added 10 each.
For Morehouse (7-9), Blake O’Farrow led all scorers with 29 points, including four treys. Darius Wade chipped in 17, while Jerone Dodd added 15, and Marshall Lazo 11.
The Cougars (8-6) now will return home and return to Peach Belt Athletic Conference play when they host USC Spartanburg on Wednesday at 7:30 P.M.
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