Morgan County boys’ basketball has struggled as of late, losing five straight coming into this week.
The ‘Dogs woes started in a non-region loss to Forsyth Central on Jan. 15. The next day, they lost to conference rival Cross Creek by a wide margin, followed by three more league losses to Harlem, the Academy of Richmond County, and Salem. They’re trying to turn their luck around this week.
Morgan County head Cody Anderson acknowledged his team isn’t making excuses for its recent struggles. The first-year coach said his team’s biggest problem is playing consistently enough to win.
“I told our guys that we’re not far from being on the other side of this thing,” Anderson explained. “But at the same time, our margin for error is small. Consistency is the big word for us.”
In the loss to Forsyth Central, Morgan County rested most of its players because it played Cross Creek the next day. However, it didn’t matter as the Razorbacks cruised to an easy win over the Dogs.
Harlem then piled on the points three days later, downing Anderson’s squad 67-51 for another loss.
Last week, Morgan County competed well against ARC and Salem, losing both games by a combined five points. Either way, the Dogs gave up 20-plus points in the first quarter of each loss “We’re not going to win games consistently if we start that way,” Anderson added. “So, that’s been disappointing, and we’ve had some diversity in different parts. The challenge for our kids is whether or not they can focus on what things have caused us to not be on the other side of this.
"At the same time, no one ever wants to lose five in a row, but we can’t change that now. How do we attack the next one? As I said before, consistency is the big thing for us.”
Anderson feels his team is in a good place at the moment. His players aren’t “making excuses” for their inconsistencies, but also aren’t hanging their heads and dwelling on the last two week’s results.
Players such as Jay Elder, Jacoby Simmons, Ryan Moore, and Jamauri Evans continue to step up.
“Morale is fine. We’re very honest with them about what is required and what it’s going to take in times when we fall short, but also when we meet the mark,” Anderson said. “So I am disappointed that we’ve lost five in a row, but at the same time, I don’t fault our kids. I’ve got to be better.”
Morgan County did bounce back with a 54-52 win over Hephzibah on Tuesday at home. The Dogs snapped their losing streak and sit at 11-12 overall and 3-5 in Region 4-AAA play going into Friday.