Cougars lose to Truman 80-75 in high scoring affair; Cougars now 0-2 on the season

The Cougars fell to 0-2 on the season after an 80-75 loss versus Truman today in the DiBart Gym. East was without 6'5 big man Jake Gurkin ('12), who was out due to sickness.

Some impressive performances were put in by numerous Cougars, but none of them were enough to lead the Cougars to victory. The Cougars were up by 12 after the first quarter, but eventually the wheels fell off for East and Truman went on a big run. After Truman took the lead late in the game, the Cougars were unable to mount a comeback.

Chris Santo ('11) led all scorers with 34 points. He also had 13 rebounds and 4 assists. Starting point guard Seth Friedman ('10) played one of the best games of his high school career, as he dished out 15 assists, scored 7 points, and secured 6 rebounds. Friedman also only turned the ball over 2 times. Forward Edou Zaken ('11) started the game for the Cougars in place of Gurkin, and had 8 rebounds before fouling out of the game.

Possibly the most impressive performer of the game was forward Marc Schlessel ('12), who played extremely well in his first career varsity start. Schlessel scored 22 points on 8-16 shooting, and hit some big three pointers. He shot an impressive 50% from the three point line (6-12).

For his performance in his first ever varsity start, Schlessel is The Cougar Cage's Player of the Game.

Player of the Game: Marc Schlessel ('12) (22 points on 8-16 shooting, 6-12 from the three point line)

Game tomorrow night versus Bishop Eustace cancelled

With school closed tomorrow, Monday, December 21, the varsity game versus Bishop Eustace that was schedule to take place tomorrow night is cancelled. The Cougar's next game is this Wednesday versus Truman at 3:45 PM in the DiBart Gymnasium.

Cougars lose 50-37 in home opener versus Lenape

It was a tough night for the Cougars. With hundreds of Cougar Countrymen in attendance, the pregame hype definitely lived up to its expectations. Unfortunately, the Cougars came out a bit flat and lost a very physical game to Lenape.

The Cougars had trouble getting their offense going on a consistent basis. It seemed like every good offensive possession was followed by an offensive turnover.

On a brighter note, forward Edou Zaken ('11) came off the bench and provided a spark for the Cougars. He finished with 9 points, with a three pointer, and 3 rebounds.

The Cougars will look to avenge the loss tonight this Monday, December 21st when the Cougars take on Bishop Eustace at Eustace for a 7 PM game.

The Cougar Cage Player of the Game: Edou Zaken ('11) (He came off the bench to score 9 points, and secure 3 rebounds.)

Season opener tomorrow night in DiBart Gymnasium

The Cougars look to seek revenge on the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last year, Lenape. They will be taking on the Indians tomorrow night (12/18/09) at 7:00 PM in the DiBart Gymnasium.

The game tomorrow night should really be an exciting one. According to the recent Philadelphia Inquirer rankings, Lenape is ranked 8th in South Jersey. The Cougars are unranked, so a win tomorrow night would potentially move them into the rankings.

Also, East's student newspaper, Eastside, will be covering the game in many different formats. An East Basketball Preview will be given out before the game tomorrow. For anyone unable to make the game, Eastside will be updating it's twitter feed (link below) with live updates/scores from the game.

http://twitter.com/EastsideOnline

Six Quarter Scrimmage Provides Glimpse of Team

Today, East scrimmaged against St. Augustine High School. The teams played six separate quarters, each with its own scoring. East was without Chris Santo ('11) due to sickness. The rest of the Cougars played well as a whole. Andrew Nahum ('10) stood out as a contributor, seeing his first significant playing time after missing time the past few seasons due to injury. Marc Schlessel ('12) showed his ability to knock down the three-pointer, making four in a row in the second and third quarters. Jake Gurkin ('12) played well in the paint, especially considering he did not have the help of Santo on the boards. Ben Gerstein ('10) made some nice baskets and Dan Melleby ('11), who will not be playing this season because he needs surgery, dazzled the crowd with a layup through traffic. Sam Rose ('11) gracefully ended one of the quarters with a buzzer-beating layup and Seth Friedman ('10) controlled the game from the point for the majority of the game. The game featured many teaching opportunities with Coach Valore and St.Augustine's coach stopping the game at various points to demonstrate what they wanted to their players.

In the picture above, Andrew Nahum ('10) goes

up for a layup in a scrim-

mage versus St. Augustine.

East basketball back for new season

This Friday, November 27th, boys' varsity basketball returned at Cherry Hill East for a "two a day" practice session. The varsity Cougars play their first game of the preseason against St. Augustine Prep, this Thursday, December 3, at 3:45 in the DiBart Gymnasium.

Check back here all season for updates, breaking news, and game recaps, brought to you by Eastside Sports Editors Nate Mulberg ('10), Mike Davis ('10), and Max Cohen ('12).