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Cloverdale scorches nets, Eels
CLOVERDALE -- On Tuesday against Clay City, the Cloverdale Clovers shot an impressive 63 percent from the field and 76 percent from within the three-point arc to defeat the Eels 70-55. More impressive than the shooting itself was the way in which it came.
With a little over a week left until Christmas, the Clovers were definitely in a giving mood. Cloverdale recorded 28 team assists on the night and moved to 5-1 with the victory.
"It was a good win for us, and I thought we had some excellent runs," CHS head coach Pat Rady said. "I thought we had excellent passing tonight. The assists were unbelievable that we had -- the ball really had eyes. I thought we had a lot of deflections and steals, our press bothered them some and they weren't comfortable. If you left them open, you could tell, they shot well."
The Eels shot 56 percent from the floor, but the Clovers were able to capitalize on their stiffiling defense and jumped out to a seven-point lead after one quarter and nine at the half.
The first half ended following a Brandon Moon drive to the lane with one second remaining, where he drained the bucket and drew the foul. However, he failed to hit the free toss and the Clovers entered the locker room with a 30-21 lead.
The Clovers had balanced scoring in the first half, with Jacob Clark and Kevin Dean leading the way with eight, followed by Moon and Salter with six points each. Jaquan Moore also had a basket.
Cloverdale grabbed the knob on the intensity level and turned it until it wouldn't go any farther.
The Clovers attacked the Eels to open the second half, producing numerous turnovers and exploding their lead to as much as 19 in the third quarter. Again, it was contributions across the board that powered the Cloverdale offensive onslaught.
"I thought tonight we had people with great shots, give up the ball for a teammate that had an excellent shot," Rady commented. "I'm very pleased.
"Like I said, I'm very proud of the way the team played tonight. I complimented them and told them that that was one of the finest performances we've had in moving the ball and getting excellent shots," he added.
Rady did comment the team had some lulls in its play Tuesday and were not as sharp as they could be at times, but in his eyes, they were trying to do the right things. He pointed out the mistakes were not careless in nature, but were the product of attempting to do things better.
The Clovers entered the final quarter with a 51-37 lead and continued to impress. In the final quarter, Cloverdale was 9-of-12 shooting and seized its sixth consecutive win, downing the Eels 70-55.
Clark led the team with 18 points, followed by Salter with 15 and Dean with 12. Moon recorded a double-double by scoring 10 points and dishing out 10 assists on the night.
Another aspect of the game that impressed Rady didn't even take place on the court. Cloverdale's band was blasting out tunes as a raucous cheer section helped propel the Clovers throughout the night and Rady was more than appreciative.
"We've got a great student body and great support here. For the band to come out midweek, that was something special for us. So I appreciate the band being here," he said with a smile.
Cloverdale will travel to Monrovia Friday for a 7:30 p.m. tip in a West Central Conference double-header.
At Cloverdale
Cloverdale 20 10 21 19 -- 70
Clay City 13 8 16 18 -- 55
Individual Stats
Cloverdale -- Clark 18, Salter 15, Dean 12, Moon 10, Moore 6, Hayden 5, Strunk 2, Scisney 2. Totals: 33-53 FG, 1-4 FT, 70 TP.
Clay City -- Newton 20, Bridgewater 17, Tiefel 5, Moore 4, Denker 3, Jenkins 3, Johnson 2, Decker 1. Totals: 23-40 FG, 5-13 FT, 55 TP.
Next game -- Cloverdale will travel to Monrovia Friday for a 7:30 p.m. tip in a West Central Conference double-header.