GLEN DANIEL – Wyoming East bounced the Liberty Raleigh Raiders from the Class AA Region III Section 1 playoffs Friday evening to the tune of 50-44.
The Warriors saw their 36-28 advantage entering the final quarter evaporate to a slim, 46-44 margin, before 2-of-2 foul shooting by sophomore Tucker Cook and freshman Garrett Mitchell, when the Raiders were forced to foul, spelled the victory for East.
In fact, the Warriors had converted only 3-of-7 free throws over the initial 24 minutes before knocking down 6-of-7 in the final period.
Liberty led 9-8 after the inaugural stanza and 21-20 at intermission before East outscored its hosts 16-7 in the third to take the aforementioned 36-28 lead at the end of the third.
In the end, Liberty had shaved two points of that eight point deficit, edging East 16-14 in the final chapter.
Senior Jacob Bishop, who claimed game scoring honors with 19 points, scored 5 in the fourth for Wyoming East, followed by Cook and Mitchell, who had 9 and 10 respectively for the game, but scored 4 each in the last canto including the 2-for-2 foul shooting apiece to cap the win.
Freshman Chandler Johnson also scored 9 for the game for the now 7-16 Warriors, who will face top-seed Westside Tuesday at the Raleigh County Convention Center at 8:00 pm.
The Raiders, who finished their season 10-11, were led in scoring by seniors Ethan Hill and Nate Griffith, who recorded nine points each.