BEDFORD COUNTY — Second effort points by Cascade and low fourth period scoring from the Raiders told the story Thursday night as Moore County lost to Cascade 47-56 in the District 8 consolation game.
The Raiders went into the fourth quarter down by just four points with a clear path to the W but missed shots and Cascade’s second efforts scores sealed the game. The Raiders shot just 5-19 from the floor and 7-17 from the three point line against the Champions.
The two teams traded losses in the regular district season. Cascade beat the Raiders in Lynchburg on January 19 by a final of 56-65. Moore County returned the favor on February 5 at Cascade by beating the Champions, 55-51. Cascade (1) and Moore County (2) came into the District Tournament ranked in the top spots but lost to Fayetteville and Eagleville respectively to match up in the consolation game. With the win, Cascade earned a three seed match up against two seed Merrol Hyde in the Regional Quarterfinals. The Raiders will now face number one seed LEAD Academy on Saturday.
Moore County dominated the first period. They gained the lead at the 2:50 mark thanks to a pair of free throw shots by Dylan Scruggs to go up 7-6. Cascade’s Alex Allison answered with a lay up. Three point shots by Riley Holman and Colton Bateman helped the Raiders end the period with a 12-10 lead.
The Raiders maintained their lead at halftime thanks in part to outstanding defense play by Andrew Copeland who managed five blocked shots in eight minutes. Cascade also wandered into early foul trouble sending Raider shooters to the line eight times in the first half of play. Copeland shot a perfect 4-4 from the line and Dylan Scruggs shot 7-8. A trey by Brayden Cashion and a jumper by Will Harder in the last two minutes helped the Raiders manage a 21-19 lead at the half.
The Raiders needed to keep Cascade high scorer Alex Allison out of the paint in the second half in order to be successful. That’s exactly what didn’t happen. Allison managed his way to the goal and through Raider players for nine second half points. Many of those points were second effort scores from Allison snagging his own rebound. Despite being outscored by Cascade in the third, three point shots by Andrew Copeland and Will Harder helped the Raiders only trail by two, 35-37, at the break.
Copeland‘s defensive efforts showed up in fouls. He started the fourth period on the bench with four. The Raiders trails by as many as eight points before Riley Hollman got them back within six with a jumper. Cascade fouled Dylan Scruggs on two consecutive plays and his 3-4 from the line got the Raiders back within three, 43-46. Allison and Jackson Davis then went back to work in the paint to get Cascade ahead 47-53 with less than a minute remaining. Moore County fouled Allison with thirty second to play. He made both giving Cascade an eight point lead that essentially put it out of reach. At the final buzzer, it was Raiders 47, Champions 56.
Riley Holman led for the Raiders with 10 points. Will Harder and Andrew Copeland followed with nine each. Dylan Scruggs and Brayden Cashion scored seven point each and Colton Bateman added five. Alex Allison led for Cascade with 17.
The Raiders now move on to Class A East Region action and will face District 7 number one seed LEAD Academy in Nashville on Saturday, February 27 at 7 p.m. To view a full bracket, click here. LEAD Academy only allows two tickets per player but local fans can watch via the NFHS Network thank to the MCHS Sport Network student broadcasting crew. Click here for that link. •
{The Lynchburg Times is an independently owned and operated newspaper in Lynchburg, Tennessee. We cover Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}