Despite jumping out to a 15-point lead early in the second quarter, the Howard boys’ basketball team had to hold on for a 71-69 victory at Brainerd in a District 6-AA rivalry clash Saturday night.
With only 150 fans allowed in due to COVID-19 regulations, Hustlin’ Tigers coach James Talley was glad to see his school’s cheerleaders pushing them on to the win.
“We are really thankful for them and don’t say it enough,” Talley noted after the Hustlin’ Tigers improved to 4-1 and 2-0 in league play. “We were happy they were here. We feed off their energy big time and couldn’t have done it without them.”
Dennis Lewis Jr. scored a game-high 23 points and hit five 3-pointers for the Panthers, who outscored their visitors 28-18 in the fourth quarter.
However, Howard had four players finish in double figures, with Jadon Jenkins leading the way with 13 points. Senior Chris Hall, with eight points and 10 rebounds, also made a difference.