The cross town rivalry game pits the Cougars against the Raiders.
The game started with the Raiders getting the ball first and turning it over. Niko Sosa scored the first basket of the game with a 3 for Durant. Akeim Young got the first basket for the Raiders, and the Raiders scored on the next possession for 4 in a row. Jamarcus Randall got the lead back for the Cougars with a 3. Young scored again for the Raiders, and a timeout was called with 4:44 left in the first. Alijah McFadden stole the ball for the Cougars and made a nice reverse layup. Randall hit another 3 for the Cougars to extend the lead. Simeon Hogan got the dunk and hung on the rim, which was ruled a technical foul, giving the Cougars two free throws, where he went 1-2. Lamon Hamilton got his first basket for the Raiders with a layup. Niko Sosa got to the free-throw line and went 1-2. Hogan got to the free throw line with under a minute left in the quarter. On the next play, the Cougars turned it over. Hogan got to the free throw line and missed the free throw, but Ta’Vare Miller hit the 3 at the buzzer, with the Raiders leading 15-13.
Nathan Moore tied the game up on the first possession for the Cougars with a layup. Miller then scored for the Raiders with an offensive rebound and putback. McFadden hit a nice fake to get open in the paint for the Cougars, and they tied it up, followed by a Raiders timeout. Niko Sosa got the layup for the Cougars to regain the lead. Angel Ortiz hit a pull-up for the Raiders, followed by Banner Howton hitting a 3 for the Cougars. Hogan then attacked the paint for the basketball, then back-to-back baskets by Ortiz and Hamilton for the Raiders. After a Cougars miss, Akeim Young grabbed the rebound, followed by a 3 from McFadden, and a 3 from Angel Ortiz, took it to half with the Raiders leading 32-31.
Nathan Moore got to the free throw line to start the second half for the Raiders and went 2-2. Moore scored again for the Raiders on the fast break layup. Randall and Niko Sosa got back-to-back lays, and then Young hit a 3 for the Raiders. Randall had a layup to stop the scoring drought for both teams before a timeout was called with 3:09 left in the third, with the Cougars up 44-41. Ortiz and Young made back-to-back layups for the Raiders. Miller got the and one for the Raiders and made the free throw. The third quarter ended with the Raiders up 50-48. The Raiders scored 18 in that quarter, while the Cougars scored 17.
The fourth quarter started with both teams turning it over, then the first basket was a 3 by Young. Banner Howton responded with a 3 for the Cougars. Moore tied the game up for the Cougars, and a timeout was called with 4:33 left, tied 53-53. Moore got an and one and converted the free throw. Another timeout was called with Durant up 56-53. Young got the offensive rebound and putback. Young then scored again after another offensive rebound. The Cougars turned it over with 2:43 left in the game. Ethan Hood checked in for the Cougars and hit mid-range. A timeout was called, and the Raiders were up 59-58 with under 2 minutes. Niko Sosa got the Cougars the lead with a layup, but then Hogan gave the Raiders the lead with 36.5 left in the game, followed by a timeout. The Cougars missed the shot, and the Raiders got the rebound. The Raiders were fouled with 15.2 left in the game and had to inbound it. Another foul was called, and another inbounds with 13 seconds left. The Cougars stole it, but the Raiders stole it right back, and Miller got to the free throw line with 5.2 seconds left. Miller went 2-2 and made the lead 3. Durant lost the ball, and the game was over. The final score was Plant City 63, Durant 60.
