The victory was not easy. It was another physical HCC battle between two programs who have had to overcome injury this year. The Bulldogs weathered play without J.D. Cosby and the Royals have had to play without their leading scorer Charlie Duffy. This past Friday night both players were ready to go though. In the end it was a Bulldog team victory that held Duffy to 7 points and the Royals to 40% shooting for the W. The first half was sluggish as both teams stepped up their defense, but the Dogs went to the locker room with a 21-19 lead thanks to great bench play from Eldridge, Roach, and Runyon who combined for 9 first half points. The Dogs came out hotter in the third quarter and increased the lead to eight points behind Cosby's seven points and Fish's six points. The Royals attacked the basket and the Bulldog big men got into foul trouble. Alan Paddock came off the bench and played tremendous defense giving the Dogs a lift. However the Royals closed the gap to two points early in the fourth quarter.Jacob Stevens answered with a three from the left wing to begin another Bulldog run. As Enique Mason grabbed defensive rebounds in the fourth, all of the Dogs knocked down free throws going 25-29 for the game, winning 65-53. J.D. Cosby led all scorers with a new career high 20 points.
Austin Fish scored 13 points, grabbed three boards, dished four assists, and nabbed three steals. Jacob Stevens shot a perfect five for five and scored eight points. Mason put in seven points and pulled down seven rebounds. Levi Roach scored seven points. Kurtis Runyon scored six points and grabbed five rebounds. Jacob Eldridge scored four points in the team victory.
