WARRIORS SLAY COUGARS: Southwestern survives tough battle against Somerset Christian

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Southwestern senior Antajuan Dumphord rises up for a slam dunk during the Warriors' 61-56 victory over Somerset Christian on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024.

SOMERSET - All the ingredients were coming together perfectly on Tuesday evening for a classic inside the Wig Wam as the Southwestern Warriors took on the Somerset Christian Cougars. Both teams had just one loss on the season and looked to be improved from last season, but did the Cougars have enough to knock off their 48th District and crosstown rivals for the first time in program history?

The answer to that question is no, but man did the Cougars look impressive even in defeat. The visitors went down several times in the contest but each time came storming back, eventually falling to the home-standing Warriors by a final score of 61-56.

Braley Adderley got the scoring started quickly in the first quarter. before a quick 5-0 spree by the Warriors gave them an early 5-0 lead after Zach Hutchinson had three of the points. A basket from Isaiah Hensley was immediately followed by an offensive rebound and two from Antajuan Dumphord as Southwestern was dominating the glass in the first few minutes of the contest.

Following two free throws from Hensley and another basket inside from Adderley, plus the first three-pointer of the game from Jack Baker, the Cougars retook the lead 11-7. From there though, it was all home team through the end of the quarter as they ended the first eight minutes on a 9-2 run. Kaden Campbell and Hutchinson both had makes inside, Adam Marcum drilled a three and Dumphord had an impressive steal and dunk combo to bring the Wig Wam to their feet. The Warriors held a 16-13 advantage at the break and were threatening to grow their lead even more.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset Christian sophomore Omari Harvey (1) finds an open teammate while in the air past the defense of Southwestern senior Antajuan Dumphord (right) and junior Wyatt Stevenson (3) during the Cougars' loss to the Warriors on Tuesday night.

After another basket from Hutchinson, Baker added his second three of the night to cut the Southwestern lead down to just two points. However, after baskets from Hutchinson and Dumphord, the Cougars' head coach Al Gover was forced to call for a break down 24-17. Right out of that break, another basket from Dumphord put the Warriors' lead to almost double figures with Somerset Christian struggling to get any offense going.

That changed rather quickly however. Baskets from Omari Harvey and Hensley, as well as a pair of free throws from Hensley, trimmed the Southwestern lead down to just five points. Another three-pointer from Baker with one second left in the half made the Southwestern lead sit at just three points at 29-26 with the teams heading into the locker room, but make no mistake, the Cougars had all the momentum at this point in the contest.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Southwestern senior Jonas Gallagher (10) attempts to gain possession of the ball during the Warriors' victory over Somerset Christian on Tuesday at the Wig Wam.

A three right out of the break from Baker tied things up at 29-29 as the junior was still "on fire" starting out the second half, word to NBA Jam. If he started out the period on fire he was ablaze soon after with his fifth three-pointer of the night to give the Cougars a 32-30 lead. That lead didn't last long, with Marcum quickly answering with a three of his own to give his team a one-point advantage. The teams traded the lead back until a pair of baskets from Marcum forced the Cougars to call timeout down 39-34 after a 9-2 spree by their opponents.

Harvey had four of the next six points to get the visitors right back into the ball game following the timeout. Marcum drilled another three before the Warriors were able to win a scrum for the ball on the floor, with the home team able to get the final possession of the period after a timeout. Southwestern was able to score one last basket as well, with Wyatt Stevenson hitting a two to give the Warriors a 46-39 lead heading into the final eight minutes.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Somerset Christian senior Elijah Brummett (2) and Southwestern senior Antajuan Dumphord (left) battle for possession of the ball while laying on the court during the Cougars' contest against the Warriors on Tuesday.

Adderley hit a two while being fouled to open play in the fourth but missed the ensuing free throw. A pair of baskets from Stevenson and Hutchinson pushed the Warrior lead to nine points before, you guessed it, another long shot from Baker that was originally ruled a three but changed to a two. Elijah Brummett finally broke into the scoring column to trim Southwestern's lead down to just five points at 50-45. Following an offensive board and two from Adderley, the Cougars called for a timeout now down 53-48.

The teams began trading free throws back-and-forth before Somerset Christian called for their final timeout of the contest trailing 57-53. A late three-pointer from Brummett cut the Warrior lead down to just three points, but a pair of clutch free throws from Dumphord essentially sealed the victory for the home team, as Southwestern prevailed by the thinnest margin in series history between the two teams 61-56. Head coach Jeron Dunbar was not pleased with some of the defensive effort of his team, but noted it is early and they will get better with time.

Photo by Jacob Pratt: Southwestern junior Adam Marcum (15) fires off a three-pointer past some heavy defense during the game between the Warriors and the Somerset Christian Cougars on Tuesday.

"It was a very important game and it's always great getting the win, but we have to get better, that's the bottom line. We had way too many turnovers, our defense was not good tonight, we are winning games right now but we are not playing near our best. We are going to get better, it is early, but we still have to get better on a lot of things," he explained.

The Warriors were led in scoring by Dumphord with 16. Other scorers included Hutchinson with 15, Marcum and Stevenson with 13 apiece and both Campbell and Jarrett Simpson with two apiece. Southwestern improves to 4-1 and 1-0 in district play on the season and will next travel to McCreary Central on Friday night for another district contest.

The Cougars were led by Baker with a game-high 17 points. Other scorers included Hensley and Adderley with 12 apiece, Harvey with eight and Brummett with seven. Somerset Christian falls to 6-2 and 0-1 in district play for the season and will be back in action over the weekend in the Briar Jumper Winter Classic. They will take on Cumberland County on Friday before taking on the hosting Somerset Briar Jumpers on Saturday in another crosstown clash.

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