Twenty-five months after being unceremoniously fired as Alpharetta's head basketball coach, Pete Goggin was back in the Raiders gym Friday night as the head coach of the opposing Johns Creek Gladiators.

Unfortunately for Johns Creek, Goggin's former team didn't show their old coach any love and behind 18 points from Earl Hill [pictured], Alpharetta was able to top the Gladiators 57-53.

Due to a scheduling quirk, it was the second time in two weeks that the two teams have played. Alpharetta and Johns Creek met on December 4 in a game that the Raiders won by 17.

Although his team kept the game close this time around, Goggin didn't find any encouragement in that, "We lost the game and I don't find any loss to be encouraging," the second year Johns Creek coach said afterward. "I think we could have beaten them and should have beaten them."

Thanks to six second quarter points from Austin Biggs, Johns Creek was able to jump out to a 25-17 lead with 3:17 left in the first half. However, the final three minutes of the second period were all Alpharetta. Raider guard Earl Hill scored seven points during an 11-2 half ending run that put Alpharetta on top 28-27 at the break. During the Raider scoring run, Johns Creek went over two and a half minutes without a basket. "You can't win basketball games when you go through stretches where you don't score for two or three minutes," Goggin said afterward.

A basket by Adam Theisen to open the second half gave the Gladiators a 30-29 lead, but the lead would be brief and it would be Johns Creek's last one of the game. Alpharetta quickly responded with Logan Reitz field goal and a Carlos Burse 3-pointer. Up 33-30, the Raiders wouldn't trail the rest of the game.

Although Alpharetta held the lead for almost the entire second half, Johns Creek kept it close. The Gladiators never trailed by more than seven and they even had two chances to tie the game up in the fourth quarter's closing minutes. However, Johns Creek turned the ball over both times, which accounted for two of their 13 turnovers in the game.

Alpharetta (6-3) was ice cold from the charity stripe in the game. The Raider winning margin could have been more if not for a 10-for-24 performance from the free throw line.

The Raiders were led in the scoring department my Hill, who finished the night with 18 points. Both Burse and Davian Jones chipped in seven points for the Raiders.

Johns Creek's (4-6) scoring leader was Reynoldo Pol, who finished the game with 11 points. Austin Biggs also reached double digits with 10 points while Theisen added nine. Senior Conor Harrington knocked down two big 3-balls for the Gladiators and the senior ended the night with eight points. 

Johns Creek will have the rest of the holiday break off, as the Gladiators won't be back in action until January 7. Alpharetta will have Christmas week off before heading three miles down the road for the Hooch Holiday Classic, which will be played December 27-29.