It’s safe to say Athens hasn’t had the greatest of seasons to this point.
The last few games, however, have shown a potential turn. The Bulldogs hope to continue a run of good play Saturday night at Logan Elm.
After losing six of seven, the Bulldogs have now won two straight games — both conference games. But what could have been a disaster of a season has turned into what could be a success.
Now only one game back of Tri-Valley Conference Ohio leader Vinton County — who Athens beat Tuesday — the preseason goal of winning the conference is within reach. The Bulldogs will still need some help, though.
“We've just got to take care of our own business and pray we get some help,” coach Mickey Cozart said.
Athens’ play the last two games can be boiled down to two simple things: defense and shooting. The Bulldogs have played well on the defensive end, creating turnovers and long rebounds. Doing that on the defensive end allows the Bulldogs to get out of the fastbreak, creating easy shots.
Sophomore Isaiah Butcher has been making a lot of those easy shots lately. Butcher took a spot in the starting lineup after Athens lost Dalton Cozart to an injury. Butcher scored 21 points in his first start Tuesday and scored nine on 4-of-7 shooting the previous game.
“You've just got to roll with it, have a 'next man up' mentality,” Mickey said. “You just got to keep playing for each other. We’ve got enough ... to go win ball games.”
Butcher is following in the footsteps of his teammates, Logan Maxfield and Eli Chubb, both juniors. Last season, as sophomores, the two were used off the bench for the most part but got plenty of minutes. This season, when they were put into the starting lineup, they became some of the most important players the Bulldogs have.
Now it’s Butcher’s turn to step into that role. He’s a big guy that can shoot the 3-pointer — a potentially deadly combination. When he makes one shot, he seems to make them all.
At Athens practice Friday, calls to get the ball to the “hot hand” were followed by passes to Butcher, who drained shot after shot.
And if that happens come game time for the Bulldogs, they will be on the right track to achieve that goal of winning the TVC Ohio.
Correction: A previous version of the photo caption misidentified which Athens player had the ball. The photo caption has been updated to reflect the most accurate information.
