CullmanTimes.com - Cullman, Alabama

Local Sports

Related Photos

  • The Good Hope boys basketball team, seen here in a photo taken during the West Point Christmas Tournament, beat Danville 68-55 Friday at home on senior night to close out the regular season on a positive note. Rob Ketcham

    Good Hope

  • Good Hope’s Alex Cofer shoots a free throw during the West Point Christmas Tournament. Rob Ketcham

    Alex Cofer

Discussion

February 4, 2012

PREP BOYS BASKETBALL: Raiders finish regular season with senior night victory

Staff Reports The Cullman Times

GOOD HOPE — One win in 23 contests, a 17-game losing streak and a lack of experience at the varsity level would cause most teams to mail it in the rest of the year and start focusing on next season.

Not the Good Hope boys basketball team.

The Raiders came out with plenty of emotion and intensity Friday at home and capped off their regular season with a 68-55 victory over Danville.

“These guys never quit,” Good Hope coach Mike Jones said. “It was senior night, so we knew it was a big night for us to come out and play. Once we got up, we never looked back.”

Jones described C.J. Ridgeway, one of the Raiders’ three key seniors — Levi Allred and Cody Ergle are the other two — as “the defensive backbone of the team,” and he didn’t disappoint in that aspect Friday night.

Despite playing with a banged-up knee, Ridgeway accumulated 13 points and had two crucial blocks. One of them came in the third quarter when Danville was making a run to try and get back in the ballgame.

“They had an open 3, and Ridgeway came out of nowhere to block it,” Jones said. “That set up a layup for us on the other end. It stopped the run cold with that block.”

Alex Cofer had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, but his biggest contributions came on the defensive side of the ball. He might as well be a credit card machine after racking up 16 charges this season, including two in his team’s winning effort against the Hawks.

Andrew Cofer led the way for Good Hope with a 22-point performance. Allred added nine points, and Eli Marty had eight.

“It was an emotional thing,” Jones said. “The student section was cheering for the seniors. There was a lot of jubilation. All the hard work paid off in the last game.”

Although the season has certainly been tough on the Raiders’ coach and players, they still have high hopes for next week’s Class 4A, Area 13 tournament. Good Hope will play No. 1 seed and host Priceville Friday at 7:30 p.m.

“Even though Priceville is ranked (No. 3), we played them pretty close,” Jones said. “Inexperience has cost us at times, but it’s not like we’ve been getting blown out. Hopefully we can hold on to this momentum and play with them.”

Text Only
Local Sports