COSBY-The Cosby Eagles and Lady Eagles remain perfect in District 2A play after stellar offensive performances against J. Frank White Wednesday night at the Eagles' Nest.

The Lady Eagles (14-3, 5-0) needed a few minutes to get going, but once they did, it was off to the races in a 58-23 victory over the Lady Knights (5-5, 0-2).

The Eagles (14-3, 5-0) suffered some early foul trouble to their big men, but overcame in an 80-39 rout of the Knights (2-6, 0-2).

 

LADY EAGLES-LADY KNIGHTS

Although their record may not indicate it, winter storms and schedule changes have been a factor.

"You get in a rhythm," said Lady Eagles' head coach Richard Coggins. "But, when you're idle for a week or two because of the weather and cancellations, it throws that rhythm off. Look at us tonight. We were a mess early on. It's definitely had an affect on us, but we've been able to overcome it."

The Lady Knights were able to stay within striking distance over the first eight minutes as the Lady Eagles tried to settle into their game with Clarissa Medley knocking down two three-pointers and adding a deuce to account for the Lady Knights' scoring. But, Lady Eagle's freshman Tiffany Smelcer was primed for a big night, hitting three shots en route to a game-high 14-point performance. Smelcer also had four rebounds on the night.

"I'm really impressed with how Tiffany has progressed," said coach Coggins. "She keeps getting more and more comfortable with her game. And she comes to play every night. She has a very high energy level, a lot of fire, that I hope the rest of our girls can feed off of."

Alyssa McMahan knocked down a three-point shot and two free throws while Taylor Valentine came off the bench to score two baskets to give the Lady Eagles a 14-8 first quarter lead.

The Lady Eagles were settled in by the start of the second quarter, especially Brooklyn Stuart, who literally took control of the paint. Stuart knocked down four shots inside en route to a 12-point performance. Stuart completed a double-double on the night by finishing with 10 rebounds.

"Brooklyn's getting there," said coach Coggins. "She's become a lot more aggressive on the boards, and we've been working hard with her on her shot. You could see tonight that her hard work is paying off. She had a big game for us."

Smelcer continued her hot shooting, nailing two three-pointers while Whitney Black came off the bench to score from beyond the arc en route to a 10-point performance and Haley Helton added a two-pointer to give the Lady Eagles a comfortable 33-11 lead at the break.

With the Lady Eagles back in form on both ends of the court, the Lady Knights had no answer. The Lady Eagles led 51-17 at the end of three, and coasted home with the 35-point victory, 58-23.

"Everybody said we would be down this year after losing seven seniors," said coach Coggins. "I'm really proud of this group. Even though we're young, the girls are dedicated and they work hard. Their talent level just keeps rising as they gain more experience. We've got the foundation here for some really good teams in the years to come.

"Right now, though, our focus is on the District," said coach Coggins. "We want to stay perfect in the District, win the regular season, and win the District tournament. If we can do that, I'll be very happy with this season."

COSBY (58): Tiffany Smelcer 14, Brooklyn Stuart 12, Whitney Black 10, Alyssa McMahan 5, Taylor Valentine 3, Dani Butler 3, Maggie Gregg 3, Keasley Shelton 2, Lexi Lowery 2, Brittany Frisbee 2, Haley Helton 2.

J. FRANK WHITE (23): Clarissa Medley 13, Leslie Lowery 5, Tatum Barnett 3, Katie Mundy 2.

 

EAGLES-KNIGHTS

Two Eagle 10-point runs at the beginning of each half spelled doom for the visiting Knights. But, Eagles' head coach Brad Flatford wasn't feeling all of that comfortable in the early going.

"I don't think we really got going until about midway through the second quarter," said coach Flatford. "We got into some early foul trouble that took our size away and changed our game. We missed a lot of open looks. J. Frank White has played everybody tough this year, including Hancock and Washburn. But, we managed, and played much better starting late in the second quarter and through the second half both offensively and defensively."

The first few minutes of the game belonged to Eagle big-man Corey Conard. The junior was unstoppable in the paint, hitting six shots and knocking down three free throws en route to a game-high 24 points. Conard completed the double-double by hauling down 10 rebounds on the night. Great numbers that were even more impressive because Conard spent much of the first half and the fourth quarter on the bench.

"Our big guys picked up some quick fouls," said coach Flatford. "Seth (Wyatt) was called for a foul right off the opening tip, and got another one a few seconds later. Right after we brought Seth out, Corey picked up a couple of fouls. So, we weren't very happy about things at that point."

But the Eagles managed to overcome it with Brandon Gates filling in off the bench, and the Eagles beginning to find their range.

The Eagles led 19-8 at the end of the first quarter, and exploded for 23 points over the next eight minutes for a 42-20 lead at the half. Wyatt reentered the game in the second quarter, and played smart with four baskets down low. A couple of three-pointers from Zach Webb off the bench, a three-pointer and two two-pointers from junior Robert Herzog and a deuce from Gates gave the Eagles plenty of momentum heading into the second half.

Wyatt continued his torrid pace in the paint with four more baskets in the third quarter en route to a 16-point performance. Conard reentered the game and immediately pumped in three more baskets while Gates sank three two-pointers, Webb added another three, Jake Green had a basket and two free throws and Jake Ledford canned a two-pointer to put the Eagles on cruise control, 71-23, at the end of three.

The Eagles coasted the rest of the way for the 41-point victory, 80-39.

"I really like this team," said coach Flatford. "They really work hard every day in practice. I don't think we're there yet. But, it'll be fun to see how far we can go."

The victory was the Eagles' 10th straight, and they now hold a two-game lead atop the District 2A standings with three District games remaining.

COSBY (80): Corey Conard 24, Seth Wyatt 16, Zach Webb 11, Brandon Gates 10, Robert Herzog 9, Jake Green 6, Jake Ledford 4.

J. FRANK WHITE (39): Matt Bailey 14, Cody Standifer 9, Will Hopper 9, Jordan Treece 4, Dakota Robertson 2, Winston Kelly 1.

 

JUNIOR VARSITY

The Eagles' junior varsity squad is showing steady improvement, and played, perhaps, their best game of the season Wednesday night with a convincing 85-36 victory over the Knights.

The Eagles soared out to a 19-5 first quarter lead and never looked back, leading 42-10 at the break, 60-28 at the end of three and cruising home with the 39-point victory.

The Eagles had five players finish with double figures, including Jacob Baxter, Drew Schreder, Zach Daruna, Cory Valentine and Tanner Phillips.

COSBY (85): Jacob Baxter 13, Drew Schreder 12, Zach Daruna 11, Cory Valentine 11, Tanner Phillips 10, Timmy Smelcer 8, Tate Parton 8, Dylan Rone 7, Johnathan Hayes 3, Luke Lemons 2.

J. FRANK WHITE (36): Will Hopper 22, Cyler Vaughn 9, Cid Oculam 2, Noah Leo 2, Logan Lowery 1.

 

UP NEXT

The Eagles and Lady Eagles jump right back into District 2A play with a big showdown with Washburn this Friday night, February 5, at the Eagles' Nest. Girl's JV will start things off at 5 p.m.

Both varsity games will be broadcast live by WLIK, AM-1270, with Brian Evans providing the play-by-play beginning at 6:20 p.m.

 

SCHEDULE CHANGES

The Eagles and Lady Eagles will travel to Greenback this Saturday, February 6. The JV has been scratched from the schedule with the Lady Eagles and Lady Cherokees tipping at 5 p.m. followed by the Eagles and Cherokees at around 6:30 p.m.

You can add Unaka back to the schedule. After being scratched on February 2, and again last night, Unaka will visit Cosby next Thursday, February 11, with girl's and boy's varsity only starting at 6:30 p.m.