JV Cougar Basketball falls to Center Academy in opener

The Cottage School JV Cougars faced Center Academy in their first game of the season yesterday at the Cougar Center. With just under 2 weeks of practice under their belts, the Cougars had a difficult time containing last year’s AAC JV runner-up. Center won, but the Cougars have a lot to be proud of and are determined to improve.

Center started quickly, getting a couple easy layups in transition to start the game. The Cougars responded well and locked in defensively. Matthew Placide and Alex Yager patrolled the paint while Liam Walsh, Paul Altermatt, and Ben Gardner swarmed the Center ball handlers. Austin Schwartz, fresh off a quality performance for the Bowling team, checked in off the bench and drained a deep 3 as the first quarter buzzer sounded.

The second quarter saw much of the same action as the first. TCS had a difficult time breaking down Center’s defense, and a few unfortunate turnovers led to easy baskets for the visitors. Bryce Dickerson and Reese Silverman provided quality depth off the bench. Hunter Cool and Javier Cremer battled for boards and played great help defense. Nate Dunbar and Michael Coryer were relentless on both ends of the court. Though the Cougars were in a deep hole at halftime, it was certainly not for a lack of effort.

The Cougars responded well in the second half, as they limited Center to difficult shots. Offensively, the Cougars were unselfish, but they couldn’t get their open looks to fall. Liam Walsh knocked down a free throw and Austin Schwartz added another field goal. Center Academy proved to be the better team last night, but the Cougars know that the season is just beginning and they have a lot of time to improve!