It was a long trip but not a wasted one.
Madison County traveled two hours to Augusta last Friday (Dec. 18) and beat Class A private school Aquinas 61-52 to improve to 9-2 heading into Christmas.
“Going into Christmas at 9-2 … That’s just a good feeling to win that last one before Christmas,” said coach Steve Crouse.
Madison County now has a few days off before facing Athens Academy at 5:30 p.m.
Monday in the opening round of the Warrior Holiday Classic at Oconee County High School.
The Red Raiders surpassed last year’s win total with last Friday’s victory. Four players reached double figures, two of whom had double-doubles, to improve Madison County to 6-0 in non-region contests.
Patrick McCrary also had 15 points and Trae Burton scored 10 as Madison County won its third straight game.
Crouse enjoyed the rowdy road element of the game, noting that 50 to 75 Aquinas students filled the stands just as the boys’ contest tipped-off.
“They were cheering and they were on us from the get-go … I thought this would be a great atmosphere for us to play in,” Crouse said.
Madison County built a 41-30 lead after three quarters and was able to hold off Aquinas (4-2). Crouse again praised his team’s defensive effort as it held another foe under 60 points.
“Our defense was again big for us,” Crouse said. “The press was working for us. We were getting the ball in transition.”
The night wasn’t without areas for improvement. Madison County still turned the ball over too many times, didn’t hand out many assists and didn’t convert in transition as much as Crouse would have liked.
But it was still another win for a program that’s off to its best start in at least a decade. Crouse noted that there was plenty of red in the stands for last Friday’s game, too, despite it being two hours away on a rainy night.
“Our people showed up two hours away,” Crouse said. “They were very, very supportive.”
Madison County shoots for its fourth straight win upon its return from its Christmas hiatus when it faces Athens Academy Monday.
Crouse is not sure exactly yet what he’ll see from the nearby Spartans, other than a sound basketball team coached by former University of Georgia standout James Banks.
“Their kids will be very fundamental and very disciplined,” Crouse said.
Offensively, Athens Academy possesses “kids capable of shooting it,” Crouse said.
And considering that Aquinas did a good job keying on McCrary, Crouse expects opposing defenses – including Athens Academy — will continue to focus on the 6’5” post player who has over 1,000 career points.
“I think we’re going to need to be prepared for that more as time goes on,” Crouse said.
The winner of the Madison County-Athens Academy game faces the winner of Oconee County and Providence Academy.
Should both the Red Raiders and Oconee County advance in the winners’ bracket, Madison County would face former Red Raider player and assistant coach Michael Youngblood, who’s now head coach at Oconee County.
“That would be a tough reunion of sorts,” Crouse said, noting that the two have coached against each other, but only in scrimmages.
The Oconee tournament field includes two Region 8-AAAA teams, Monroe Area and Apalachee, and two Class AAAAA squads, Collins Hill and South Gwinnett.
“We could end up playing someone in our region,” Crouse said. “It will be a good tournament.”
MCHS 61, Aquinas 52
MCHS 14 16 11 20 — 61
Aquinas 9 15 6 22 — 52
Scorers: Raines 19, P. McCrary 15, Maxwell 13, Burton 10, T. McCrary 4
