Published on January 21, 2026 10:43 am
Last Updated on January 21, 2026 10:43 am
#8 COWDEN-HERRICK/BEECHER CITY BOBCATS
Coach: Tanner Thompson
Record at Seeding: 8-11, 1-4 NTC
by DUSTIN WHITE
A year removed from winning just eight times all season, the CHBC Bobcats had already equaled that victory total by the time they were assigned the No. 8 seed in the 90th Annual National Trail Conference boys basketball tournament.
It’s modest improvement for a program Coach Tanner Thompson has spent the last several years attempting to revamp on and off the court, but improvement is improvement and that’s not to be overlooked.
“Our team is competing every game as of late,” said Thompson. “I love how intense we have been. We are a very quick team that likes to get up and down the court.”
Griffin Vaughn’s 13.9 points per game lead the Bobcats; the junior enjoyed a marquee moment when his buzzer-beating bucket gave CHBC a 45-44 win over visiting Neoga on Jan. 12. It was especially sweet for Thompson’s crew because they’d been the victim of a buzzer beater just six days prior in overtime at Shelbyville.
Another junior, Remington Howell, checks in at 11.4 points per game, while seniors Clive Schlanser and August Cosart along with juniors Porter Lilly and Carter Dilley are all no strangers to competition on the Altamont High School floor in front of those NTC tournament crowds.
The eight seed means CHBC will face a rematch with No. 9 Neoga in the play-in round exactly two weeks after the buzzer-beater at Beecher City. Whoever wins gets to come back the next night and tangle with top-seeded Cumberland, but that’s life in the NTC and Thompson – a former Cowden-Herrick Hornet himself – knows it as well as anyone.
“You are always going to have to bring your ‘A game’ night in and night out,” said Thompson. “You don’t get days off in this conference.”