CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The Northeast Lady Eagles traveled to Clarksville Academy for the Clarksville Academy Basketball Classic on Monday. A 22-0 run in the first quarter powered the Cougars to a big win, 66-29.

Wing Vicky Anderson paced the Cougars from the jump, scoring their first seven points, ending up with nine in the quarter. Forward Camille Thomas got in the action soon after, scoring nine points in the same span, commanding the Cougars’ 22-0 run to go up 22-2. 

“This was a game where we wanted to not pick up bad habits and spread the ball around,” said Cougars head coach Charles Clark. “They took advantage of opportunities, found their teammates when they needed to, and played a good brand of basketball.”

The Cougars were up 51-16 at the halftime break. Northeast actually nearly matched the Cougars’ scoring in the second half, led by forward Tianna Charles with 12 points, but the early deficit was too big a hole to overcome. Academy’s Anderson ended the game leading all scorers with 19, guard Sicilly Robison followed her up with 14, and Thomas was the third Cougar in double figures with 13.

“We struggled early, but we got better as the game progressed,” said Eagles head coach Tracie Mason-Blair. “We’re down a few players, so we try to get out there and see a few players step up late. Every game for us, we’re trying to get better from one game to the next, and hopefully when it matters, we will be where we need to be.”

As for the Cougars, after a string of one-possession and overtime contests, they finally have a game to let their younger or inexperienced players get some run. For Clark and his crew, it was fun to win a contest in that fashion, but he knows that the standard must remain the same.

“It was a great opportunity to get some girls in that haven’t had much chance to play, we’ve had a lot of games where we relied on some girls to play high minutes,” said Clark. “It was good for them to win like this, but sometimes it can be a little fool’s gold. We will have to refocus quickly, but no matter whom we play, we want to be the best version of ourselves.”

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