Clinton County was handed its first loss of the season Monday night after traveling to Somerset to take on the Briar Jumpers at the Briar Patch. From tip off to the final buzzer, the Bulldogs never found its groove and let a team that had been previously beaten by Russell County defeat them by 11 points, 70-59.

Clinton County 59

Somerset 70

The Bulldogs took the floor Monday night in hopes of adding win number six to the record, but instead endured its first loss of the season.

Somerset set drew first blood with a three pointer, the first of eight in the ballgame. The Bulldogs quickly came back and scored a field goal to cut the lead to one point, 3-2.

During the next several minutes, both teams put out feelers and while the Bulldogs never got on track, Somerset started making baskets and jumped out to a 12-3 lead with 3:33 on the clock.

A pass by Colby Langford found an open player under the goal for two points, but Somerset added a basket of its own to regain the nine point lead, 14-5.

Another three pointer by Somerset gave the Briar Jumpers a 17-6 lead just before the start of the second period and the Bulldogs added three more points to the board to finish the quarter, 17-8.

The beginning of the second quarter continued to see the Bulldogs struggle from the floor.

Somerset extended its lead by as much as 13 points, 25-12, before the Bulldogs made a run before halftime.

Clinton County’s 9-1 run before the half cut the lead to five points, 26-21.

During the third quarter, the Bulldogs dug a deeper hole than the team couldn’t crawl out of.

Somerset continued to remain hot from the three point line and finished the game with eight made three pointers.

At the end of the third period, Clinton County was behind, 47-33.

The fourth quarter saw much of the same from the Bulldogs. Shots didn’t fall, turnovers plagued the squad, and Somerset’s hot hand kept the Dawgs from successfully making a run for the win.

Clinton County trailed by 17 points, 57-40, before making a small run at the lead.

A 10-3 run finished at the 2:26 mark and saw the Dawgs close the gap to 10 points, 60-50.The closest the team could get to Somerset was eight points with 1:24 on the clock, 65-57.

The Dawgs lost the contest, 70-59 and move to 5-1 on the season.

Individual scoring for Clinton County was:

Beard 14

Langford 12

Davis 11

Dalton 10

England 6

Claywell 5

Nelson 1

Clinton County 64

Russell County 61

Friday night’s game at Russell County met all expectations with fans and spectators as the two top teams in the district faced off. The game stayed close until the end which saw Clinton County move to 3-0 in district play and 5-0 overall with the 64-61 win over the Lakers.

The Bulldogs struggled during the opening minutes of the game as Russell County jumped out to a 5-0 lead.

Clinton County’s Colby Langford hit the first basket for the Bulldogs and that started a 6-0 run to lead, 6-5 with 3:37 remaining in the period.

The lead changed back and forth for the remainder of the period until less than a minute to go in the quarter when Frank England hit a field goal to put the Dawgs up by four points.

Russell County answered with a three pointer to cut the lead to one just before the quarter ended, 13-12.

During the second quarter, Clinton County continued to play hard and keep Russell County from gaining too much ground on its home floor.

Russell County grabbed a four point lead midway through the period, 21-17, but a field goal and a free throw by Langford cut the Russell County lead to one point, 21-20.

The Lakers then hit a field goal to move ahead by three points, but a free throw and a field goal by Keifer Dalton tied the score for the third time, putting both teams knotted at 23 with 2:24 left in the half.

Dalton made another field goal, after a defensive stop, to move ahead by two points, 25-23.

Russell County tied the score with a field goal in the paint by Nick Coffey, but a three pointer by Dalton gave the Dawgs a three point edge going into halftime, 28-25.

After halftime, Clinton County came out strong by grabbing a five point lead when Frank England hit a field goal, 30-25.

The Lakers then hit back-to-back field goals to cut the lead to one point, 30-29 with 6:45 on the clock.

After a basket by Langford to regain a three point lead, Russell County hit two field goals to take the lead from the Bulldogs, 33-32 with 5:17 remaining in the third quarter.

Dalton answered with two baskets for a three point advantage, 36-33, followed by two free throws to lead by five, 38-33.

The Lakers’ star, Tyler Robertson, hit a three pointer to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to two points, but then a basket in the paint by Langford with 3:17 showing on the clock put the Dawgs ahead by four.

The remainder of the quarter saw both teams fighting for control, but Clinton County ultimately won that battle, keeping Russell County in comeback mode.

With four seconds left in the period, Dalton grabbed a rebound and made a put back for a six point lead to start the fourth quarter, 46-40.

That six point lead was the largest lead of the game for both teams and Clinton County continued to lead through the first five minutes of the period.

At 2:55, Russell County tied the game at 54. Ryan Beard made a basket at 2:12 and was fouled. Beard made the free throw to put the Dawgs up by three points, 57-54.

The Lakers then made a five point swing on the Bulldogs to lead by two points with 1:28 remaining in the game.

During the next possession, Dalton made a field goal with 1:11 on the clock to tie the game for the seventh time, 59-59.

The next trip down the floor, Russell County was fouled and Robertson made two from the foul line for a two point advantage, 61-59, with 38 second remaining.

With good execution, Clinton County held the ball in order to get the last second shot. Down by two points and time running out, Dalton found himself open on the left wing and put up a three pointer that found the bottom of the net with 11 seconds on the clock.

With plenty of time on the clock for Russell County to try and score, Clinton County’s defense held up. Russell County attempted to put up a shot, but Beard got control of the ball and was fouled with eight seconds remaining. He hit both free throws to give the Bulldogs a three point lead and the win after Russell County’s final attempt failed, 64-61.

The Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the floor on 23 of 46 shooting and 75 percent from the foul line on 15 of 20.

As a team, the Bulldogs pulled down 25 rebounds and committed only nine turnovers.

Individual scoring for Clinton County was:

Dalton 30

Langford 16

England 10

Beard 8

Clinton County 61

Cumberland County 50

Tuesday night, December 11, Clinton County faced Cumberland County at Lindle Castle Gymnasium. The game didn’t go as expected for fans, instead, Cumberland County fought hard and gave the Bulldogs a tough time overall.

The Panthers opened up on Clinton County with a 9-0 run. The Bulldogs’ cold start put the team in survival mode through the first quarter. Fans saw the Dawgs struggling to find its rhythm.

It took Clinton County the entire quarter, but they managed to cut the lead to two points just before the start of the second quarter, 16-14.

Beard came out in the second quarter and hit a three pointer during the opening minute to give Clinton County its first lead of the game, 17-16.

Dalton continued the scoring streak and grabbed a field goal for a three point lead with 6:33 on the clock.

Cumberland County hit two free throws and a basket to tie the score at 19. Coming off the bench, Cole Nelson added an inside presence to the game and picked up a basket with 5:10 on the clock to give the Dawgs a two point advantage, 21-19.

The Panthers scored on its next trip down the floor for a one point lead, 22-21, but a free throw by England and a three pointer by Joe Davis gave the Dawgs a three point lead with less than three minutes remaining in the half, 25-22.

Cumberland County answered with back-to-back field goals for a one point lead, but a drive to the goal and a foul saw Dalton hit the basket and the free throw for a 28-26 lead.

Cumberland County hit a field goal just before halftime to send both teams into the locker room with a 28-28 tie.

During the third quarter, Clinton County continued to struggle with the Panthers. The Bulldogs started off with a basket by Langford, but Cumberland County answered with a field goal of its own, 30-30.

England hit a bucket, but once again, Cumberland County tied the game on a field goal and continued to give the Dawgs trouble on the offensive end of the floor.

With both teams going back and forth, the game was turning into the rivalry of previous years, giving the fans an “edge of the seat” game.

With 4:45 on the clock, Clinton County began to find the bottom of the net more easily and was able to hold the Panthers on defense.

A 7-0 run quickly put the Bulldogs on top, 39-32, with 3:39 remaining in the third period. Cumberland County scored a field goal to cut the lead to five, but a three pointer by Beard at the 3:01 mark, gave the Dawgs an eight point lead, 42-34.

Cumberland County scored again on the next possession, but Beard had a different answer as he hit yet another three pointer, followed by a field goal by Langford for the first double-digit lead of the game, 47-36.

Langford also hit a three pointer just before time ran out to end the period with a 12 point advantage for the Bulldogs, 50-38.

Clinton County outscored the Panthers in the third quarter 22-10, which gave the Bulldogs some momentum heading into the final period.

Cumberland County wasn’t finished. The Panthers were firing on all cylinders and playing the definition of “team” basketball.

A 7-0 run by Cumberland County saw the Panthers cut the lead to five points, 50-45 with 6:59 remaining in the game.

Ethan Cook received a pass on the block from Langford to score an easy two points to stop the bleeding, 52-45.

On the next trip, Beard was fouled and hit one of two from the line to regain an eight point lead, 53-45.

The Panthers then hit a field goal to cut the lead to six, 53-47.

A small scoring drought by both teams saw more than three minutes off the clock without a basket. At the 2:11 mark, Beard knocked down another three pointer for a nine point advantage, 56-47. Clinton County then started working the ball around the half court while seconds slipped away from the Panthers.

Clinton County would finish the game by hitting four free throws in the final minute and a half, while allowing Cumberland County a last second three pointer.

The Dawgs finished the game with an 11 point victory and 2-0 in district play.

Individual scoring for Clinton County was:

Dalton 16

Beard 15

Langford 12

Davis 10

England 6

Cook 2

Nelson 2

The Bulldogs will host the Twin Lakes Holiday Classic December 20-22 at Lindle Castle Gymnasium.

Clinton County’s first game of the tournament will be Thursday, December 20 at 6 p.m. against Seneca, followed by two game son Friday versus Iroquois at 11 a.m. and Boyd County at 7:30 and a game on Saturday against Muhlenberg County at 6 p.m.

Colby Langford went in for a shot during the second half against Russell County on Friday night. The Bulldogs held on to win the game by three points, 64-61, and move to 3-0 in district play. Langford finished the game with 16 points.

Ryan Beard hit a shot during the second half against Russell County Friday night. Clinton County won the game and moved to 3-0 in district play. The Bulldogs suffered its first loss Monday against Somerset, 70-59.