It was clear from the opening tip that the Bowdon High School boys basketball team was going to make the most of its first game in its new gymnasium on Saturday, as the Red Devils came out with hustle and passion in cruising to an 83-42 victory against an overmatched Cleburne County (Ala.) team.

From blocking shots to getting up and down the court for easy baskets to feeding its dominant post players the ball to the solid moves and finishes from those interior players, Bowdon (2-0) showed that it wanted this contest badly.

Red Devil coach Vic Coggins said his team wasn’t focused in the early going with all of the distractions of opening up its new building, but it quickly got the ship righted.

“We were a little sloppy, but then we got going,” Coggins said. “We got some pressure on those guys and got them going fast, which of course helped our offense.”

No lead was big enough to keep the Red Devils from giving strong effort and making sure the Tigers wouldn’t be coming back.

Senior Terell Thornton and junior Cedric Strickland led the way in the post. Thornton had 21 points and seven rebounds, while Strickland filled up the stat sheet with 17 points, five rebounds, three blocks and three steals.

Coggins said it was a matter of focusing on the paint, where just about all of his team’s points came in the first two quarters.

“We pounded the ball in like we had planned,” Coggins said. “We did a good job.”

And after their first-half dominance down low, the Red Devils nailed six 3-pointers in the second half.

Senior forward Darious Moten had an off night on the offensive end, but he still affected the game in plenty of ways with 10 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.

Junior point guard Nathan Montgomery added 10 points and five steals on a night when Bowdon’s defense often turned into offense and Cleburne County simply couldn’t keep up with the pace the Red Devils pushed.

“We wanted to play fast. We wanted to up the tempo of the game,” Coggins said. “And it helps when you’ve got some guys back there that can block some shots.”

As much as it was good to get another win, which made his team 2-0 this season, Coggins is glad the first game in the new gym is now in the past.

Bowdon will be back home on Tuesday night when Haralson County comes to town for an early-season rematch.

“I was glad to get the first one over with,” Coggins said. “I was trying to get a little bit of the new off of it so now we can focus on basketball, not focus on the new gym.”

Cleburne County girls 53, Bowdon 39: Freshmen Jacole Stephens and Sydney Boddie led the Red Devilettes’ offensive attack with 12 and 11 points, respectively, in a game that was closely contested until the Lady Tigers pulled away in the closing minutes of the contest.

“That’s a good sign. That’s something to build on, you know, because people know that (junior guard) Camry (Morris is) our top returner, as far as ability, so they’re going to key on her,” Red Devilette coach Melissa Ring said. “So everybody else has to step up, and the fact that those two freshmen did, that’s a good sign.”

Morris added seven points for Bowdon (0-2), which cut a deficit that had grown as high as nine to 44-39 on a basket by Boddie with 4:08 remaining in the game. Boddie was fouled on the play, but she missed the free throw.

The Red Devilettes were 0-for-7 at the foul line in the fourth quarter.

“That’s huge. And we do shoot them, but I can promise you we’ll shoot a whole lot more next week,” Ring said.

Ring said senior guard Lindsey Rooks gave her team a good defensive effort coming off the bench while playing through sickness. She was also pleased with freshman Lyric Maze’s effort on defense.

Ring said keeping focus even when her players are tired is vital, an area she said wasn’t the best on Saturday. She thinks it may be a matter of time as her players adjust to bigger roles than they’re accustomed to filling.

“They’ve always had other players to lean on and to count on when the game’s on the line,” Ring said. “And now it’s them.”

Dynasty Person led Cleburne County with 15 points, while Charlsie Coefield added 12 for the visitors.

Even in the loss, Ring said her team made progress from Tuesday’s season-opening 55-43 defeat against Haralson County, a team the Red Devilettes will host this coming Tuesday.

“We still have a long, long way to go,” Ring said. “But the fact that we’re continuing to get better, that’s a good thing.”

Editor's note: To see more pictures from Bowdon's first night of games in its new gym, check out the slideshow on the front page of the Times-Georgian Web site.