Even without star center and Mississippi State basketball commit Keyshawn Feazell from Lawrence County, the Cougars had no problems taking care of Bogue Chitto this week with  a score of 77-35.

The convincing victory moves Lawrence County to 8-4 on the season and the loss drops Bogue Chitto 2-12 on the season.

“We were just outmatched from the start,” Bogue Chitto head coach Mark Pitts said. “Lawrence County is a really strong team and they imposed their will on us.”

Lawrence County got a quick jump on offense against Bogue Chitto, scoring at least 20 points in each of the first two quarters to take a 41-21 lead going into halftime.

Bogue Chitto struggled even more in the second half, as Lawrence County clamped down on defense and held the Bobcats to only 14 second half points. Lawrence County outscored Bogue Chitto 36-14 in the second half, cruising to a 77-35 win.

The size of Lawrence County gave Bogue Chitto problems all throughout the game as Lawrence County hauled in 26 rebounds and took care of the basketball, only turning the ball over eight times. Efficient shooting also gave Lawrence County the advantage in the game, as they shot 49 percent from the floor, making 30 of 61 shots.

Without Keyshawn Fezelll, it was very balanced scoring for Lawrence County as eight Cougar players scored at least five points on the night.

The Cougars were led by senior forward Vernell Garner, who led the team with 15 points on 7-9 shooting from the field with four rebounds and two steals as well. Junior forward Cam Alexander scored 12 points on 3-11 shooting, adding on four assists and two rebounds as well. Seniors Corbin Lewis and Myron Moore each scored eight points on the game as well.

“We were going to try a lot of things defensively against them, but it didn’t work out so well,” Pitts said. “Their young guys seemed to play a lot better, even without Feazell. They responded well to the challenge.”

It’s been a season of struggles for Bogue Chitto with the team standing at 2-12 and losing their first eight games of the season. The Bobcats have shown improvement over the past three games, even in losses, by keeping games competitive and never showing signs of giving up.

“We’ve always been getting better over the course of the season,” Pitts said of his team. “We knew we were young and we knew we were going to make mistakes. Playing against a strong strength of schedule has also helped our team develop.”

The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Bogue Chitto as the competition only gets more difficult after the Christmas break. Coach Pitts knows his team is ready for the challenge and for his younger guys to improve.

“How I look at the rest of the season is how we play is more important than wins and losses,” Pitts said. “I want our team to get better for district play. The goal is to improve every single day and see where we go from there.”