Alexander and Lithia Springs split their two varsity games on Saturday night. The Lithia women's team won their game 61-47. The prime time men's matchup between arguably the top two teams in the county was dominated by Alexander as they handed Lithia their first county loss, 74-64. They flexed their muscles early on and throughout, and proved, for at least one night, that they were kings of the county. 

The men's game got off to a competitive start. Early on in the first quarter each team's star player, Alexander guard Karim Mawuenyega and Lithia (15-4) forward Neil Phillips, were hot and led the scoring. However, each team appeared uneasy from a combination of early nerves and the fact that they were feeling each other out. Nevertheless, Alexander (13-4) developed a small lead at the end of the first quarter, 19-13. 

Once the Cougars gained confidence, they looked extremely tough to beat. They were dominant defensively, forcing turnovers off their full court press, and were consistently hitting shots both inside and outside, and when they did miss they would often times hit the glass with intensity and were rewarded with second chance shots.

The true dominance game came at the end of the quarter when Alexander closed the half on a 12-0 run, during which Mawuenyega hit two straight three point shots in the final minute, leading all first half scoring with 14 points. As the two teams entered the locker room Lithia faced a tough road ahead as they were down 41-26.

The Cougars kept their momentum going into the third. Mawuenyega began the second half with eight straight points. Their feisty defense kept the game in control, and besides Phillips' points for Lithia in the paint, they couldn't establish much on offense. As the third quarter came to a close it was all but decided with Alexander leading 59-41. 

Lithia finally managed to establish some consistency on offense, but it was to little too late as they were already in to deep a hole to climb out of. Mawuenyega continued his dominance, ending his night with 28 points. Phillips led Lithia with 22 points. The Cougars also had great contribution from guard Lemarcus Frazier, who scored 11 points and had a great defensive presence. 

In the girl’s game, it was Lithia guard Tashara Jones who, unsurprisingly, took over the game. From the opening tip when she dribbled down and drained a three, to the closing minutes, Jones lit up the scoreboard. In the first quarter, both teams battled back and forth, but it was Alexander's inability to contain shooting behind the arc that put Lithia up 13-12. 

Lithia (11-7) entered a scoring surge in the second quarter, with Jones leading the way. It was a combination of confidence and pure talent which Jones exhibited, scoring from all areas of the court. Once again the Lady Cougars (6-11) had trouble stopping three pointers, coming from a number of Lithia guards including Tobreisha Horn and Brionne Baylor. As the game entered the halftime intermission, Lithia led 31-22. 

Jones mimicked her first quarter start after a steal led to a breakaway layup. Although the Lady Lions could not extend their lead any further, they added a low post scoring presence to go along with their outside shooting.

Forward Selena Crummie dominated the paint in the second half, with many of her points coming from Jones assists. Alexander guard Molly Brown helped the Lady Cougars narrow the gap, however Lithia maintained a comfortable lead, up 47-34 at the end of the third quarter. 

 Jones and company put any Alexander hope of coming back to rest as they wrapped up the game in the fourth quarter by hitting important field goals and free throw shots. Jones ended the game with 33 points. Crummie led all post scoring with 13 points. Alexander guard Treasure Matthews led the Lady Cougars in scoring with 12 points.