Cougars hold off Wilson Central 45-38 to claim Region 5 title, will host Monday’s sectional

Dickson County’s Cougars seized the Region 5-AAA crown Thursday night by beating Wilson Central 45-38 at Beech High School. With the win, the Cougars earn the right to host a state sectional game Monday when Region 6 runner up Hillsboro will come to battle for a spot in the TSSAA State Tournament in Murfreesboro. While Dickson County’s career scoring leader JeQuan Lewis had an off night offensively, missing on a dozen three-pointer attempts, Cougar senior Tyler Spicer stepped up to lead the team with 20 points, including five treys, and was named the tournament MVP. The Cougars built a six-point lead at intermission but the Wildcats battled back to pull within one at the end of the third period. But a 13-7 fourth period saw Dickson County connect on a couple of key shots and enough free throws down the stretch to secure the region title. Lewis finished the night with 13 points, which pushed his school scoring record to 2001 points. Brentwood crushed Hillsboro 56-36 in Region 6, meaning the Bruins will host Wilson Central and the Burros come to Dickson County for a 7 pm contest Monday. It gives DCHS alumnus Kevin Tuck, who is retiring at the end of the season, one more home game to wrap up his 15 years as the Cougar coach. The winner advances to the eight-team state tournament set to begin March 13 at MTSU.