By: Adam Freeman
Tucker County Head Coach Daniel Helmick said he wanted to simulate a state tournament-type run during the regular basketball season. He got just that with games against AAA Grafton and North Marion, followed by bouts with Class A #6 East Hardy and #1 Tug Valley.
Tucker began this gauntlet of games at home, playing host to Grafton High School. The Mt. Lions never trailed and settled in for a quality 65-53 victory over the Bearcats.
E. Cummings 19 Pts, 8 Reb, FT 6-8; S. Marks 12 Pts, 7 Reb FT 2-3; M. Mitchell 11 Pts, 4 Ast, FT 3-4; X. Lambert 9 Pts, 5 Reb, FT 5-6 C. Dearborn 7 Pts, 1 Reb; C. Arnold 4 Pts, 1 Reb, FT 2-5, L. Barb 3 Pts, 2 Reb, FT 1-1
3-Point Field Goals( 6-18)
Cummings (3) Dearborn (1) Mitchell (1) Marks (1)
The team then traveled to Summersville to take on one of the top-ranked teams in AAA, the North Marion Huskies. Tucker trailed by only two points, 26-24, at the halftime break, but offensive woes in the second half limited the Mt. Lions to just 11 points as they ultimately fell 52-35.
C. Arnold 13 Pts, 3 Reb, FT 1-2 ; E. Cummings 7 Pts, 3 Reb, X. Lambert 6 Pts, 5 Reb ; S. Marks 4 Pts, 5 Reb; C. Dearborn 3 Pts, 1 Reb ; L.Barb 1 Pt, FT 1-2; D. Simmons 1 Pt.
3-Point Field Goals( 2-16)
Dearborn (1) Cummings (1)
The Mt. Lions returned home on Friday to take on the Class A #6 East Hardy Cougars. Tucker found themselves down 14-2 to start the game but battled back to trail by just three, 30-27, at the half. TC outscored the Cougars 18-8 to start the second half, powered by Cayden Arnold’s career-high 25-point performance. Tucker pushed through to the end to secure a 59-51 win.
C. Arnold 25 Pts, 4 Reb, 4 Stl, FT 3-8; S. Marks 8 Pts, 4 Reb, FT 2-2; E. Cummings 8 Pts, 4 Reb, FT 1-4; C. Dearborn 7 Pts, 6 Reb, FT 2-2; L. Barb 4 Pts, 3 Reb; M. Mitchell 4 Pts, 1 Reb, FT 2-2; X. Lambert 3 Pts, FT 1-2
3-Point Field Goals (2-18)
Cummings (1) Dearborn (1)
Last, but certainly not least, a home matchup on Saturday with the two-time defending State Champion Tug Valley Panthers (both against the Mt. Lions) wrapped up the busy week. The game started in an unusual fashion when a technical foul was assessed to the Mt. Lions for dunking during warmups; this gave Tug Valley a 1-0 lead before a single second had come off the clock.
The contest was a back-and-forth slugfest, with Tug holding a one-point lead (18-17) at the end of the first, a two-point lead (33-31) at the half, and a one-point lead (52-51) at the end of the third. With the Mt. Lions trailing by one heading into the final frame, both teams scored exactly 14 points in the fourth, allowing Tug to maintain their narrow advantage for a 66-65 win. Tucker’s “Slinging Sammy” Marks notched five triples in the effort to lead the Mt. Lions.
S. Marks 19 Pts, 3 Reb; M. Mitchell 16 Pts, 8 Reb, FT 2-2; E. Cummings 11 Pts, 3 Reb, FT 3-6; X. Lambert 9 Pts, 1 Reb, FT 3-4; C. Arnold 8 Pts, 7 Reb; C. Dearborn 2 Pts, 4 Reb.
3-Point Field Goals (11-24)
Marks (5) Mitchell (4) Lambert (2)
Tucker will return to the court on Monday, January 5th, at home against the Southern Garrett (MD) Rams. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM.
