First-year Carmel Christian coach Joe Badgett wasn’t too happy with his nationally-ranked team’s 82-62 win over Concord Cannon School Saturday.
Playing in front of a sold-out crowd at its home gym, the Cougars (2-0) didn’t appear to be fully invested, taking on a Cannon School team that is heavily dependent on three promising freshman: 6-6 D.J. Nix, 6-6 Harrison Alexander and 6-3 point guard Jaden Bradley.
Cannon hung in Carmel for awhile, before the Cougars’ depth and skill turned the game into a rout. Worse for Cannon, Bradley fouled out with 3 minutes, 24 seconds left in the third quarter, his team down 50-38.
“Our defense was just not good,” Badgett said. “We let guys drive down the middle and get to the rim and do things we just don’t let teams do.”
Cannon freshman D.J. Nix (24 points) and Carmel senior DeAngelo Epps (25) were named game most valuable players, and Nix and Cannon showed that -- down the line -- they will be a national-caliber team. But the 2018-19 season may be about growth.
For Carmel Christian, 2018-19 is about trying to repeat as state champions.
Badgett said Saturday’s performance won’t get them there.
“We can get away with some of that stuff tonight,” he said. “But later in the season, against teams that can really execute and cause us some problems, that stuff will get you in trouble. The good news is we’ve got (a video service) and can watch film and these guys can see that I’m not crazy, that coach Joe does know what he’s talking about.”
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Playing in front of a sold-out crowd at its home gym, the Cougars (2-0) didn’t appear to be fully invested, taking on a Cannon School team that is heavily dependent on three promising freshman: 6-6 D.J. Nix, 6-6 Harrison Alexander and 6-3 point guard Jaden Bradley.
Cannon hung in Carmel for awhile, before the Cougars’ depth and skill turned the game into a rout. Worse for Cannon, Bradley fouled out with 3 minutes, 24 seconds left in the third quarter, his team down 50-38.
“Our defense was just not good,” Badgett said. “We let guys drive down the middle and get to the rim and do things we just don’t let teams do.”
Cannon freshman D.J. Nix (24 points) and Carmel senior DeAngelo Epps (25) were named game most valuable players, and Nix and Cannon showed that -- down the line -- they will be a national-caliber team. But the 2018-19 season may be about growth.
For Carmel Christian, 2018-19 is about trying to repeat as state champions.
Badgett said Saturday’s performance won’t get them there.
“We can get away with some of that stuff tonight,” he said. “But later in the season, against teams that can really execute and cause us some problems, that stuff will get you in trouble. The good news is we’ve got (a video service) and can watch film and these guys can see that I’m not crazy, that coach Joe does know what he’s talking about.”
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