It’s been a season of ups and downs so far for the Cards this year as the team’s road win at Lexington (3-8) last Thursday brought them to .500 and evened their record at 6-6.
The win was a big one for the Cardinals, who entered the matchup having dropped consecutive home contests to Nevada (63-32) and Summit Christian (70-54) on Tuesday and Wednesday of the same week.
However, the resilient Cardinals, in their third game in three days, prevailed on the road against the Minutemen with a 57-52 final.
Clinton struggled early to get their offense going and trailed at the first quarter buzzer, 10-9.
In the second period, the Cardinals began to find their rhythm behind Dom Jackson's 8 points as he led them to a slim halftime lead of 22-19.
The third period was a back-and-forth one but Lexington managed a slim margin of 18-15 and the game was tied entering the final frame, knotted up at 37-37.
Clinton owned the fourth as Jackson rained in 2 timely three-point shots and conneceted on 4-for-4 from the line in the period. The Cardinals took the quarter, 20-15 and eventually the game, 57-52.
Jackson paced the Cardinals offense with 27 points. Richie Brown and Brayden Ethridge added 7 points each while Emrie Neal and Mitchell Alexander both tossed in 6 apiece.
CLINTON (57): R. Brown, 7; D. Jackson, 27; E. Neal, 6; B. Ethridge, 7; M. Alexander, 6; J. Wilson, 0; G. Ethridge, 0; X. Ray, 4.
LEXINGTON (52): M. Gonzalez, 21; D. Moss, 21; P. Kaullen, 0; D. Reeves, 0; Z. Miller, 0; C. Grom, 0; C. Schieber, 0; C. Sawyer, 0; Z. Melvin, 1; C. Soendker, 1; C. Lichte, 0; D. Thompson, 8.
To cap their busy week, the Cardinals welcomed Odessa to town on Friday night but their stint at .500 was short-lived as they fell below that mark once again after absorbing a 68-60 loss to the visiting Bulldogs.
Odessa came out firing and led 16-6 at the end of the first and used a 20-5 advantage in the second to secure a comfortable 36-11 halftime lead.
But the same Cardinals, who overcame just a night before, came out in the second half, a different team.
Both teams battled but Clinton managed to squeak out a 20-13 advantage in the third period to peck their way back in, still trailing 49-31.
In the fourth, the talented backcourt of Richie Brown and Dom Jackson for Clinton combined for 25 of the Cardinals 29 points in the period. Clinton took the final frame with a 29-19 margin, but Odessa held on late, handing the Cardinals the 68-60 loss.
Brown and Jackson matched each other with 19 points apiece to lead Clinton. Xzavier Ray was also in double-digits with 11.
CLINTON (60): R. Brown, 19; D. Jackson, 19; E. Neal, 4; B. Ethridge, 2; M. Alexander, 0; J. Wilson, 3; J. Balke, 0; G. Ethridge, 2; X. Ray, 11; K. Townsend, 0; S. Taylor, 0.
ODESSA (68): C. Bennett, 4; L. Linkhart, 0; N. Begemann, 0; H. Nye, 1; P. Mitchell, 11; Z. Miller, 8; J. Murray, 25; K. Crowder, 0; B. Petersen, 0; I. Sumy, 19; D. Cates, 0; A. Mitchell, 0; D. D'obron, 0.
The Cardinals will travel to Sedalia for their next game to take on Smith-Cotton on Wednesday night. They'll then be back at home to host Butler on Tuesday.
