The Cole Cougars had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 35.5 points), and they went ahead and made it seven on Friday. They managed a 49-43 victory over Marion. Given Cole's advantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 269th, while Marion is ranked 596th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for James Livingston, who scored 25 points. Another player making a difference was Kenny Atunrase, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 18 rebounds.
Despite the loss, Marion still got an impressive performance from Braeden Fleming, who scored 15 points along with four steals. Fleming hasn't dropped below two steals for eight straight games. Jaiden Riley was another key contributor, scoring four points along with 11 rebounds and two steals.
Cole is on a roll lately: they've won 13 of their last 14 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 22-9 record this season. As for Marion, their defeat ended a four-game streak of away wins and brought them to 18-7.
Cole will head out on the road to take on Luling at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Luling is coming into the contest on a five-game losing streak. As for Marion, they will look to defend their home court on Tuesday against Nixon-Smiley at 7:30 p.m. Nixon-Smiley has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 188 points over their last three matches.
