Austin Cope lifts the Harrison Warriors for 69-57 win against Central

Cope lifts Harrison, Warriors hold off Bears in the fourth quarter

By Drew Bruno (Contact)
Wednesday, December 10, 2008

It took only one shot to get the Harrison crowd on Austin Cope’s side, chanting he’s on fire after the senior guard sank a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter.

Perhaps the fans were prophetic; Cope went on to score nine points in the final period helping the Warriors to a 69-57 win against Central Tuesday night.

Nurturing a lead the entire night, Harrison saw its advantage dwindle to two points at the start of the fourth and for the first time in their conference opener against Central, the Warriors looked rattled.

But when the ball found Cope open in the corner, the senior guard calmly sank a 3-pointer putting his team up 50-45.

Nevermind that he had only two points and hadn’t made a basket since the second quarter.

“I was just thinking knock it down,” Cope said. “That’s all.”

He soon sank another 3 and a tough jumper from the elbow, all part of a 12-2 run, and the Bears could get no closer than within seven points down the stretch.

After scoring 16 points in a season-opening win, Cope finished with 11 points in what was both teams Southern Indiana Athletic Conference opener. It was part of a balanced effort for Harrison (2-0, 1-0).

Sophomore Yawan Woolfolk scored 15 points and had 11 rebounds while Southern Illinois basketball recruit Kendal Brown also had 11 rebounds.

“We talk about that all the time — we have to rebound,” Warriors coach Bryan Speer said. His team held a 34-20 advantage on the boards, 17-6 in the first half and 12-6 on the offensive glass overall.

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