Terry Skinner’s step-back jumper at the end of the first half gave Kosciusko a 1-point lead over Louisville at intermission, and the senior’s efficient shooting helped lift the Whippets to a 76-74 win over the Wildcats last Friday.
Kosciusko (12-4, 1-0 Region 4-4A) returned to the hardwood after a 13-day layoff to host rival Louisville in both teams’ first game of the new calendar year.
“Louisville is a good team,” Kosciusko coach Eleazarus Greenleaf said. “A lot of scouts and sports reporters picked Louisville to win our district, so it was a good win. We haven’t played since toward the end of December, but we’ve been practicing really hard and watching film and getting prepared for the upcoming district season.”
Despite the layoff, Kosciusko offense showed no effects of the extended break. O’Corya Forrest tallied a team-high 24 points, Terry Skinner produced 22 points, Calvin Banks tallied 12 points and JaQuan Hall ended with seven points.
“The kids came in focused and ready to play,” Greenleaf said. “We changed up a few things as far as offenses go and defenses go, and they bought into it. I think that really helped us to get this victory.
Tequavious Braggs scored 24 points, Shemar Eiland added 16 points and Terrell Thames poured in 10 points to round out the Wildcats’ double-digit scorers.
Louisville led 18-15 at the end of the first quarter before Kosciusko rattled off 24 points in the second period to give the Whippets a 39-38 advantage at intermission.
Kosciusko outscored Louisville 19-17 in the third quarter.
“It was a good momentum booster,” Greenleaf said of Skinner’s late second-half basket. “It was a big momentum boost to end the half, and coming into the third quarter.”
Kosciusko was set to host Choctaw County Tuesday before traveling to New Hope Friday.
GIRLS
Kosciusko began the new calendar year with two losses last week.
Louisville earned a 70-26 win over Kosciusko last Friday in the Lady Whippets’ Region 4-4A opener, and Heidelberg escaped with a 61-59 win Saturday afternoon in the Newton High School classic.
Aaliyah Amey earned Kosciusko (8-9, 0-1 Region 4-4A) player of the game honors against Louisville after posting 10 points and four rebounds.
“Coming off of a big layoff, I think that kind of hurt us,” Lady Whippets coach Cory Guyton said. “We just could never get into rhythm. We practiced some over the holidays. We ran into a buzz saw. Louisville is a good team, an experienced team that’s been together for a while. They have good coaches. It’s probably one of the harder teams that we’ll play in our division. The first quarter, we just could never get a rhythm in, and it trickled down from there.”
The Lady Whippets had a short turnaround as they traveled to Newton one day after the Louisville loss to play in the Newton Classic. Kosciusko was without starters Mikhayla Vaughn and Kayla Davis, who were unavailable due to familial obligations.
Katie Mitchell was Kosciusko’s player of the game behind 15 points, three assists and two steals.
“We couldn’t get it together offensively,” Guyton said. “We had a lot of mistakes – a lot of small mistakes that we committed. We were missing two starters. We went in a little shorthanded, but I still think we could have done better than we did. They played hard, and we had a lot of freshmen out there (who) gained a little more experience. I thought they played hard, we just couldn’t overcome mistakes.”
