CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The Clarksville Academy Cougars hosted the Webb School Feet in a regional quarterfinal matchup, and a win or go home game with the right to advance to the state tournament on the line. The Cougars got in a hole early, and couldn’t crawl out of it, as Webb School advanced by a score of 70-54, ending the Cougars season.
The size of Webb proved to be an issue for the Cougars defensively, as they were able to crash the offensive glass to create second-chance opportunities. Offensively, not much was falling for Clarksville Academy either. Despite the slow start, they were only down 10 at the half 32-22.
“There’s a different level of preparedness we have to get to,” said Cougars interim head coach Sean Jones. “We have to be able to create offensively, just through natural movement, and some of that just comes with time and experience.”
A huge third quarter for Webb saw the Feet build a 20-point lead, and Clarksville Academy was unable to mount a comeback, ending their season only win away from the state tournament. A bright spot for the Cougars has been their senior guard Trae Rideau, who averaged over 20 points per contest. Rideau was a key piece in the Academy’s two state tournament runs during his freshman and sophomore seasons’.
“It’s been an amazing experience,” Rideau told Clarksville Now. “Getting to the state tournament is what you dream about all through middle school. I’m blessed to be here, and thankful for my time at Clarksville Academy… I hate how this ended, but I’m thankful for it all.”
Sean Jones took over the Cougars boys’ basketball program just two short weeks ago, but he will forever be thankful for this team and the way they rallied together.
“Our situation has been strange the past two weeks; this is a group of high-character kids that have had to deal with a lot of adversity,” said Jones. “They bought in, I’ll forever be indebted for the way they responded to me. They could’ve just shut down, but instead we had a chance to play for a championship. There’s a lot of bright spots, but if I’m able to stay in this spot moving forward, there are a lot of things we can do to get over the hump.”