Cougars advance in tourney with win over Marked Tree

Kirk Horton pulls up for a jumpshot. [Click to enlarge]

The Cougars earned a trip to the second round of the 2A-3 District Tournament at Caraway by rolling over Marked Tree 81-56 on Saturday.

Rector climbed out to a 23-14 first quarter lead and never looked back, going ahead 41-28 at halftime and 61-37 going into the final period.

"We're just trying to get back to where we need to be," Cougar coach Mark Manchester said. "We're giving it everything we've got to keep our season going."

Freshman Brandon Stevens works his way inside for the Junior Cougars. [Click to enlarge]

Justin Duke had the hot hand for Rector, burying eight three-pointers en route to finishing with a game-high 32 points on the night.

"He was playing at another level," Manchester said. "He was focused and had one of those good shooting nights he's capable of having."

Tyler Kirklin and Blake McCarroll also scored in double figures, netting 17 and 11 points, respectively. Kirk Horton and Coty Banning had five points each for the Cougars.

The win propelled the Cougars to a second round meeting Tuesday with perpetual foe Riverside. A win there will quality Rector for the regional tournament.

Juniors Fall at Caraway

The Junior Cougars concluded their season Saturday with a 44-28 loss to East Poinsett County in the district tournament at Caraway.

Rector trailed throughout: 12-6; 15-9 and 24-13.

Brandon Stevens finished with a double-double, netting 11 points and pulling in 12 rebounds to lead the young Rector squad. Also scoring for the Junior Cougars were Mitchell Weber 6, Ben Petty 6, Dillon Shelton 4 and Zack Gilbee 1.

Win over Holcomb

The Senior Cougars picked up a 60-54 win over Holcomb Friday night in Rector. The win gave the boys a positive note, as the team wrapped up their scheduled games in their home gymnasium.

The game was a back-and-forth encounter, which saw Rector trail 16-14 after the first frame. The Cougars held slight leads at intermission, 26-25, and after three frames, 44-40.

Duke finished with 21 to lead Rector. Banning and Kirklin were strong inside, scoring 15 and 11, respectively. McCarroll and Horton notched eight and five points, respectively.

Chad Adams led Holcomb with 16 points.

Loss to Marmaduke

The Cougars were in action at Marmaduke Thursday, as they fell to the Greyhounds, 74-63.

A slow first quarter put Rector behind early, 18-6, and made the road back a difficult one for the Cougars. Marmaduke led 35-19 at the half and 53-39 going into the fourth.

Duke led Rector with 23 points. Banning had 15 in the loss. Also scoring for Rector were Kirklin 8, Horton 8, McCarroll 7 and Jacob Chronister 1.

Junior Boys downed

Marmaduke also won the junior high game, as Rector was downed 43-34.

Marmaduke led throughout: 17-10; 25-16 and 34-27.

Stevens led Rector with a game-high 17 points. Weber had 12 in the loss. White notched four points, while Dustin Sparks scored one.

Jeremy Clark led Marmaduke with 14 points. Morgan Hawley and Kasey Reagans scored 14 and 10, respectively. Also scoring for the Greyhounds were Cody Taylor 4, Dylan Vangilder 2 and G.W. Brumley 1.