Henley leads CCHS to win

By TONY STINNETT

MURFREESBORO - Teams generally develop trends as the season unfolds and Cannon County's has become evident one-third of the way into the 2012-13 campaign.

When junior guard Cory Henley scores double figures the Lions win.

Henley produced his greatest offensive performance of the season with 25 points on the strength of six 3-pointers to lead the Lions to a 72-50 win at Central Magnet Tuesday (Dec. 4).

The Lions (6-2, 1-1) improved to 6-0 when Henley scores double figures. They are 0-2 when he does not. Henley was 6-of-10 from 3-point range and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line in his offensive exhibition against the Tigers (2-3, 0-1).

"My teammates made some great passes to get me the ball and they were setting good screens to get me open," Henley said. "I was feeling good and shooting with confidence. I think that was the big thing is just having confidence in my shot and getting good looks."

Henley hit four straight 3-pointers during one stretch and was 5-of-6 from beyond the arc at one point.

"Cory is a great shooter and he puts a lot of time into his game," Cannon County Head Coach Matt Rigsby said. "He had a great shooting night. He played with confidence. He shot with confidence. I thought we played well as a team and really shared the basketball."

Henley was one of three Lions with double figures. Jarrett Melton and Zach Higgins scored 10 points each. Melton almost had a unique double double. He had nine steals to help create Cannon County's transition offense.

Tommy Mitchell was solid all around with seven points, four assists and five rebounds. His playmaking was pivotal in Cannon County's success.

The Lions enjoyed one of their best quarters when they scored 28 against the Tigers. Cannon County was clinging to a 16-14 advantage after the first quarter but exploded for 28 in the second quarter to provide distance. Henley had three 3-pointers during the uprising.

"That second quarter was big and we did a good job of creating turnovers and getting into our transition offense," Rigsby said. "We were doing a good job of making the extra pass, finding the open man and executing with a strong inside-out approach. It's good to see what can happen when you execute."

Henley connected on six of the team's nine 3-pointers. Higgins was 2-of-2 from beyond the arc. The Lions were 9-of-20 from 3-point range.