Coach Jim Tucker and his NCOE Fighting Cardinal basketball team traveled back to Southeastern Illinois College Friday evening to take on the Carrier Mills Wildcats for 7th place in the Greater Egyptian Conference Tournament.
Action started out very balanced in this contest but when the buzzer would sound following the first 8:00 of play the Fighting Cardinals would come out on top and cling to a 16-13 lead. The second quarter was not as favorable on the offensive end for the Fighting Cardinals as they would witness the Wildcats go on a 9-7 run to cut into the NCOE lead. The Fighting Cardinals would, however still have a one point advantage heading into the locker room at halftime.
Following intermission, the Fighting Cardinals made some adjustments and hit the court with a new found energy. This allowed NCOE to get the momentum on their side as they erupted for 15 third quarter points. This, along with a good defensive stand, limited Carrier Mills to just nine points which allowed the Fighting Cardinals to extend their lead to 38-31 with one quarter remaining. This final stanza found the Wildcats making one last run at NCOE and with less than one minute to play, Carrier Mills would manage to cut to Fighting Cardinal lead to just one point. At this time, NCOE would step to the line and convert two free throws to stretch their advantage back out to three points. This three point differential is where the final score would remain as the Fighting Cardinals would capture 7th place with the 46-43 victory.
Ty Money was the top scorer for NCOE (7-12) with 11 points followed by Brandon Skaggs with 10 points, Jack Riggs five points, Trey Simmons four points, Joe Melton four points, Colton O’Neal four points, CJ Richardson three points, and Houston Money two points.
