It took three quarters but the Trigg County Wildcats found a gameplan that finally worked and used it to beat the Caldwell County Tigers 71-62 Tuesday in Cadiz.
That plan centered on Jhaden Vaughn attacking the basket. The Wildcat junior scored 16 of his 21 points in the decisive fourth quarter that saw Trigg County outscore Caldwell 33-24 to grab the win.
Both teams were playing without a starter for various reasons and Trigg County was without head coach Mason Burgett for a third straight game due to sickness.
It was Caldwell County that assumed control early, pushing the tempo and hitting the glass for a 10-4 lead. The Wildcats regained their footing the second quarter as a nearly five-minute scoring drought by the Tigers saw Trigg end the frame on a 12-2 run to take a 24-20 lead into halftime.
JayDarius Wilson started the third quarter strong for Caldwell, scoring its first six points of the half as Caldwell reclaimed a 35-30 lead. It was a big night for the Caldwell sophomore who scored 26 points and grabbed 15 rebounds before fouling out late.
Landon Stewart scored five points in the final 48 seconds of the quarter to notch the game at 38-38 with eight minutes.
Trigg County’s pressure defense had begun to pay dividends in the third quarter but took full effect in the final frame. The Wildcats scored 18 points off eight Caldwell turnovers as they erased a five-point deficit with a game-deciding 17-0 run sparked by a Vaughn dunk with 4:26 left.
The Wildcats shot 47-percent in the second half and hit 22-of-30 free throws for the game.
Caldwell commanded the glass 37-33 and outscored the Wildcats 40-24 in the paint but 20 turnovers in the contest led directly to 28 Trigg County points.
Collin Whittington added 13 points and seven rebounds, and Carter Whittington chipped in nine points and seven assists.
Luke Washer was one of four Wildcats in double figures with 17 points and eight rebounds.
Trigg County has won 15 straight games when scoring 70 points or more.
Caldwell County travels to Crittenden County Thursday while Trigg County makes the trip to Calhoun Thursday to play McLean County.
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| Caldwell County (4-18) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jaydarius Wilson 11-18 4-5 26; Carter Whittington 4-12 1-2 9; Jack Roach 3-8 1-2 7; Luke Maddox 0-0 0-0 0; Totals 26-59 6-9 62. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Trigg County (12-12) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Luke Washer 6-14 3-4 17; Hunter Reynolds 3-8 2-2 11; TuTu Gude 3-11 4-6 10; Landon Stewart 3-9 2-3 9; Tayshaun Linton 1-4 1-2 3; Totals 21-57 22-30 71. | ||||||||||||||||||
| 3-point goals-Caldwell County 4-13 (Colin Whittington 3-8; Demarius Thompson 1-2; Carter Whittington 0-1; Jack Roach 0-2), Trigg County 7-26 (Hunter Reynolds 3-7; Luke Washer 2-5; Landon Stewart 1-5; Jhaden Vaughn 1-3; TuTu Gude 0-5; Tayshaun Linton 0-1).
Fouled out--Caldwell County-Jaydarius Wilson, Trigg County-None. Rebounds-Caldwell County 37 (Jaydarius Wilson 15), Trigg County 33 (Jhaden Vaughn 14). Assists-Caldwell County 15 (Carter Whittington 7), Trigg County 11 (Jhaden Vaughn 5). Total Fouls-Caldwell County 18, Trigg County 13. |
