By By ROBERT BLANKENSHIP
Advance Managing Editor
After scoring a victory against Coosa Valley Academy in the first round of Escambia Academy's United Bank New Year's Classic, the Cougars suffered a defeat in the championship game to the state's second-ranked Faith Academy, 82-64.
The Cougars scored a big win against 1A opponent Coosa Valley using a stingy and aggressive pressure defense.
The two teams battled through the first period to a 10-9 EA lead. But, the second period proved to be a big one for Escambia Academy.
Four different players hit three-pointers in the second period and by the half, EA held a 38-24 lead.
At the end of three periods, the Cougars held a 56-41 advantage and coasted through the fourth period as they posted a 77-63 victory to continue to the tournament's championship game.
Leading scorers for EA were Justin Shirley with 28 points, Daniel Alaniz had 15, David Daniel posted nine points and Mitchell Adams finished with eight.
But, winning the championship was a tough task as Faith Academy came in ranked second in the state and had already beaten the Cougars twice this year.
Even though this game was closer than the previous games, EA still came out on the short end of an 82-64 score.
Faith held a slim lead after one period, 18-16. But, they were able to open up a larger lead in the second period as took a 47-29 advantage. By the end of the third the lead had increased to 68-41.
Leading scorers for EA were Alaniz with 19 points, Mitchell Adams had 14 and Shirley finished with 11.
Pruett said his team felt better about the latest game with Faith despite having lost.
Shirley and Adams were selected to represent the Cougars on the All-Tournament Team.
The Cougars' record stands at 9-7 and is 1-0 in the area. They will host Crenshaw Christian Academy in an important area game Friday night at 7:30 p.m.