Raiders down Cougar boys in basketball

Van Wert independent sports

Wayne Trace’s Ethan Linder scored his 1,000th point as the Raiders defeated the Van Wert Cougars 55-42 in a non-conference game on Monday in the Cougar’s Den.

Linder, who led both teams with 16 points, was given the ball with which he scored the milestone points during a ceremony held on the court. Luke Miller had 10 points for the Raiders, while Eli Sinn added 9 points and Alec Vest scored 8 for Wayne Trace. Josh Braun led Van Wert with 12 points, while Jacoby Kelly scored 11 points, and Colin Smith had 8 points for the Cougars.

The Raiders led by a basket, 13-11, after one quarter of play and were up by four, 23-19, at the half. It was still close at the three-quarter mark, with Wayne Trace leading by six points, 43-37, but the Raiders sealed the win with a 12-5 run in the fourth quarter.

Neither team shot the ball particularly well in the game, but the Raiders got plenty of second chances as they dominated the boards, bringing down 32 rebounds to 22 for Van Wert.

The Cougars were 17 of 44 from the field (38.6 percent), including just 2 of 18 from three-point range (11.1 percent). Van Wert hit 6 of 12 free throws (50 percent).

Wayne Trace was 20 of 45 (44.4 percent) from the field, including 7 of 15 from behind the arc (46.7 percent) The Raiders made 8 of 13 free throws (61.5 percent).

The Cougars did have fewer turnovers (9-11) than Wayne Trace.

The Van Wert junior varsity team won 47-34, with Nate Place leading the Cougar JVs with 14 points, while Drew Bagley added 12 points for the victors. No one on Wayne Trace scored in double figures.

The Cougars will next be in action on Wednesday when they host Minster in a non-conference game.