The Trenton High School basketball teams celebrated a lot on Tuesday night, but didn’t end up celebrating any victories as Cameron came to town and defeated the Lady Bulldogs and Bulldogs on Senior Night and courtwarming in Trenton.
Cameron took the girls’ game 48-36 and followed that up with a 42-40 win in the boys’ contest.
Lady Bulldogs
The girls game began with an exchange of free baskets as Lady Bulldog senior McKinley Hurley started and scored the game’s first bucket of the night. Hurley was Trenton’s leading scorer until tearing her ACL in a game during NCMC’s Holiday Hoops in December, which effectively ended her senior season and career with Trenton High School. Following her bucket, Cameron was given a free pass and the game took off from there with the score 2-2.
Trenton was able to hang with the Lady Dragons early, trailing just 14-10 after the first quarter. Cameron dialed up its pressure defense, however, and by halftime the lead had grown to 29-16. Cameron maintained its lead in the third quarter and coasted through the fourth to take the 12-point victory.
“The first half quarter went well, then Cameron turned up their half-court defense and we struggled,” Lady Bulldogs’ Head Coach Brian Upton said. “We never adjusted to the pressure they gave us and to their physical-style game. We had trouble taking care of the basketball and that led to a lot of empty possessions.”
Trenton was paced by Whitley Richman, who had 18 points, six rebounds and three steals. Lexie Tolson added five points and three assists and Daryian Otto finished with four points and five rebounds. Trenton also got three points from Ally Ockenfels, two points each from Hurley and Ashten Whitaker and one point and three rebounds from Jaylen Neff. Tenna Roberts rounded out the team total with one point.
“Whitley led us in points, rebounds and steals, but we had trouble generating any other offense,” Upton said. “Hopefully, we can continue to learn from these games and improve before we get to district play.
“Cameron was gracious enough to allow us to start McKinley and let her score a basket on Senior Night. That was very nice of them and I appreciate it and I know McKinley did as well.”
With the loss, the Lady Bulldogs fell to 11-12 on the season.
Bulldogs
The boys contest came right down to the wire, but Cameron edged the Bulldogs by two points in the end. Cameron jumped out to a 13-6 lead in the first quarter, but Trenton reeled them in in the second and went to the locker room at halftime trailing just 17-15. The game remained close in the second half with Cameron leading by four entering the final frame. Trenton was right there down the stretch, but couldn’t pull out the win in the end, falling by a single basket.
“It’s sad to lose another close game this year,” Bulldogs’ Head Coach Jeremy Austin said. “I know the kids were disappointed, but it’s just part of the game. We have lost 10 games by less than five points this year.”
Trenton was paced by Spencer Harris who had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Cree Mullenix finished with 11 points, three steals and three assists. Chris Flowers had eight points and three blocked shots, Cade Mullenix added four points and three assists and Kail McCarter had two points and four assists.
“Spencer played really well and had a great performance at each end,” Austin said. “We played a good game, just not good enough. We executed very well in the second half and generally made good choices with the ball offensively. Our defense kept them from scoring a lot of points, we just did a poor job on the defensive boards. It cost us too many points.”
The Trenton boys fell to 10-14 on the season.
Cade Mullenix, Flowers, Aaron Anderson and Trent Crawford were playing their final home game as senior Bulldogs.
“I am very proud of our senior athletes this year,” Austin said. “They are hard working, dependable and, overall, just a great group of kids. It has been an honor to be able to work with them over the past years. Trent has been a fixture in the gym at our practices for the last four years and his attitude and demeanor every day make him a perfect teammate. Aaron is a great defensive player and a strong competitor. His time on the court is always filled with strong effort and occasional flashes of offense. Cade is one of the most capable basketball players I have had the opportunity to coach. He has a knack for hitting big shots when we need them and has knocked down two huge three’s for us in the closing seconds of games so we could push the game into overtime. Chris has worked his way into a dominant center position in the area. He has made big strides from the first season he played. He is an excellent shooter and strong presence inside, forcing many an attacker to make last minute adjustments to their shot. I know he will keep getting better because of his work ethic.”
Trenton’s teams will play their regular season finales on Thursday, traveling to Hamilton for their final games before district play next week. Action tips off at 6 p.m. with the girls’ contest and the boys’ game will follow.