A packed house filled Cougar Den Friday night as Western Hills welcomed crosstown rival South Hills for a basketball doubleheader. By night’s end, both Cougar squads had given their home crowd plenty to celebrate.
The Lady Cougars opened the evening with a much-needed 22-13 victory over the Lady Scorpions, bouncing back from two tough losses to improve to 1-2 on the season.
Then came the boys’ home opener, featuring a Western Hills team looking to build on last season’s 7-21 record.
Neither team found much offensive rhythm early, but Mohammed “Mo” Soumahoro helped Western Hills establish an 8-6 first-quarter lead with five free throws. Keon Bergman and Dimani contributed in the second quarter, sending the Cougars into halftime ahead 18-14.
Western Hills dominated the third quarter. A disciplined 2-3 zone defense and at times strong man-to-man disrupted South Hills’ offense, forcing turnovers and creating fast-break opportunities. The Cougars also capitalized on the Scorpions’ foul trouble, stretching their lead to 35-26 entering the fourth.
South Hills continued to battle, but Gabriel and Bergman took control down the stretch, Bergman knocking down all five of his fourth-quarter free throws and Dimani adding two crucial baskets to help seal a 51-34 Cougar victory.
Bergman led all Western Hills scorers with 24 points, followed by Soumahoro with nine. Dimani and Troy contributed six apiece, Gabriel added four, and Ja’Reese finished with two.
For a Cougars team that finished fifth in district play last season, the home-opening win offered an encouraging start to a new campaign.
Now 2-0, Western Hills returns to Cougar Den on Tuesday, November 17, at 7:30 p.m., to host the Turner Lions.
And after Friday night’s performance, Cougar fans have good reason to look forward to what’s next.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.