Calhoun County, AL – Eight winners emerge, but revised schedule because of forecasts of hazardous winter weather dominates conversation on second day.
By Joe Medley
The threat of hazardous winter weather on Tuesday prompted organizers of the 73rd Calhoun County basketball tournament to revise the tourney schedule with no Tuesday games.
The quirkiest element of the revised schedule would force two boys’ semifinalists to play twice on Thursday and, if they advance to Friday’s final, three times in two days.
Top seed Oxford and No. 4 seed Alexandria are the favorites by seed to face that predicament.
“Play,” Oxford coach Joel Van Meter said. “Nothing anyone can do about it. Best team usually comes out on top.
“Appreciate them working hard to get it planned.”
Pairings, days, times (revised)
CALHOUN COUNTY TOURNAMENT
At Pete Mathews Coliseum
BOYS
Saturday, Jan. 13
No. 11 Faith Christian 71, No. 14 Jacksonville Christian 58
No. 12 Ohatchee 59, No. 13 Wellborn 31
Monday, Jan. 15
No. 7 Weaver 52, No. 10 Pleasant Valley 35
No. 8 Saks 46, No. 9 Donoho 36
No. 6 Piedmont 56, Faith 49
No. 5 White Plains 66, Ohatchee 32
Wednesday, Jan. 17
No. 2 Anniston vs. Weaver, 1:30 p.m.
No. 3 Jacksonville vs. Piedmont, 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 17
No. 1 Oxford vs. Saks, noon
No. 4 Alexandria vs. White Plains, 1:30 p.m.
Semifinals, 2 vs. 3 bracket, 4:30 p.m.
Semifinals, 1 vs. 4 bracket, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 19
Championship, 8 p.m.
GIRLS
Saturday Jan. 13
No. 11 Weaver 53, No. 6 Saks 50
Monday, Jan. 15
No. 10 Ohatchee 44, No, 7 White Plains 35
No. 9 Wellborn 64, No. 8 Jacksonville Christian 36
No. 4 Piedmont 48, No. 13 Pleasant Valley 21
No. 5 Alexandria 56, No. 12 Faith Christian 21
Wednesday, Jan. 17
No. 2 Oxford vs. Ohatchee, noon
No. 1 Anniston vs. Wellborn, 3 p.m.
No. 3 Jacksonville vs. Weaver, 6 p.m.
Piedmont vs. Alexandria, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 18
Semifinals, 2 vs. 3 bracket, 3 p.m.
Semifinals, 1 vs. 4 bracket, 6 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 19
Championship, 6 p.m.
Game updates
WHITE PLAINS-OHATCHEE GIRLS
End 1Q: Ohatchee, White Plains tied 7-7.
Halftime: Ohatchee leads White Plains 20-12.
End 3Q: Ohatchee leads White Plains 29-22.
Final: Ohatchee wins, 44-35.
OHATCHEE 44, WHITE PLAINS 35: Emily Riddle scored 15 points, and Peyton Walker and Tabi Davidson scored nine apiece to help No. 10 Ohatchee score an upset of No. 7 White Plains and give first-year coach Aaron Jackson a victory in his first county-tourney game in his new capacity.
“It’s always cool to get a win here in the Pete,” Jackson said. “It’s a great venue. The county and JSU always do a good job of putting this on.”
Jackson was promoted after Bryant Ginn returned to Alexandria, his alma mater.
“We’re a younger team, and he sees our potential that we have,” Walker said.
Injury-depleted White Plains suffered its 12th consecutive loss. The Wildcats lost center Bella Higgins to a season-ending knee injury earlier this season, and Cassidy Arnold missed her second game after sustaining a knee strain at Cherokee County last week.
Cooper Martin and Addi Bradley led the Wildcats with 10 points apiece. Martin hit two 3-pointers.
“We had 24 turnovers,” first-year White Plains coach Clay Sprayberry said. “I’m pretty sure they slammed us on the boards. I guarantee is was a 25-to-five difference on offense and defensive rebounds.
“It’s hard to win games when you get outrebounded, and you can’t score.”
PLEASANT VALLEY-WEAVER BOYS
End 1Q: Weaver leads PV 18-12.
Halftime: Weaver leads 25-19.
End 3Q: Weaver leads Pleasant Valley 35-32.
Final: Weaver wins, 52-35
PLEASANT VALLEY 52, WEAVER 35: No. 7 Weaver scored 22 of the final 25 points after No. 10 Pleasant Valley took a 32-30 lead and earned a shot at No. 2 Anniston on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
Weaver’s game-ending run came after Bearcats coach Beau Winn called timeout.
“I hope nobody had a camera back there,” Weaver coach Beau Winn said. “I don’t think I said any choice words, but I was pretty fired up.
“I was worried about our having to get up at 10:30. We were up and down, but we did what we needed to do, and I’m proud of them.”
Kaden Gooden led Weaver with 18 points, including four 3-pointers. He hit three threes in the first quarter.
KeShawn Allen added 16 points with one three.
Bryce Freeman led Pleasant Valley with eight points, and Cooper Dougal added six.
“The worst thing that happened was, we took that two-point lead,” Pleasant Valley coach Brad Hood said. “That’s what i was telling the kids. Weaver didn’t do anything different that entire second half.
“We tied it up and went up two, they answered, we come down and throw the ball away against that 1-3-1. We worked on it and worked on it and worked on it the last couple of games. We knew that was the only key to the game was attacking the 1-3-1 halfcourt.”
JCA-WELLBORN GIRLS
End 1Q: Wellborn leads JCA 14-11.
Halftime: Wellborn leads JCA 33-11.
End 3Q: Wellborn leads 54-18.
Final: Wellborn wins 64-36.
WELLBORN 64, JACKSONVILLE CHRISTIAN 36: No. 9 Wellborn’s Anna Odom wasn’t trying to outscore No. 9 Jacksonville Christian on Monday, but she did notice the scoreboard and scoring leaders a time or two.
“I looked up there, and I was like, hmmm,” she said.
Odom wound up with 35 points in one of the tournament’s top individual performances to date, including 16 points as Wellborn outscored JCA 19-0 in the decisive second quarter to lead 33-14 at halftime.
“I’m proud of her,” first-year Wellborn coach Ashlon Dempsey said. “What I love about Anna is, she could come out here and score every point, but she’s probably one of my best team players.”
Wellborn also got 14 points from center Calla Hayes and 10 from Mikayla Williams while earning a second-round shot at top seed Anniston on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Addy Lee led JCA with 16 points, and Katie Beth Hudson added 16.
“Wellborn is improving a lot, and that coach is doing a very good job,” JCA coach Katy Bryant said. “Anna Odom, man, she’s just somebody you want on your team.”
SAKS-DONOHO BOYS
End 1Q: Saks leads Donoho 13-10.
Halftime: Saks leads Donoho 27-15.
End 3Q: Saks leads Donoho 35-20.
Final: Saks wins, 46-36.
SAKS 46, DONOHO 36: Christian Smith led the way with 11 points, and Josh Todd added nine as No. 8 Saks earned a shot at top seed Oxford in Thursday’s noon quarterfinal.
“Our kids, I feel like it’s going to be a tough matchup with Oxford,” Saks coach Wes Ginn said. “They’re big. They’re physical. They’ve got guys who can score.
“Our goal is to get out there and play hard, make it tough on them and improve during that game, so that it makes us better down the road.”
Jordan Cameron led Donoho with 17 points, including 11 points in the fourth quarter. Bryce Downey added 10 points.
The game marked Donoho head coach Korielle Beavers’ latest attempt against his alma mater. He played under Charles Burkett at Saks and helped the Wildcats win Northeast Regional titles in 2005 and 2006.
He said there’s something special about the chance to go up against Saks.
“For me, it really is,” he said. “We want to get them. It was double overtime the first time we played them this year, and it’s just like we just competitively keep doing the same things. It’s will and toughness.”
PIEDMONT-PLEASANT VALLEY GIRLS
End 1Q: Piedmont leads PV 14-3.
Halftime: Piedmont leads PV 26-5.
End 3Q: Piedmont leads Pleasant Valley 34-13.
Final: Piedmont wins, 48-21.
PIEDMONT 48, PLEASANT VALLEY 21: Ava Pope scored a game-high 18 points, and Cayla Brothers added 12 as the No. 4 Bulldogs (12-7) advanced to Wednesday’s 7:30 p.m. quarterfinal against the Alexandria-Faith Christian winner.
“Defensively, in the first half, in the first half, we played really, really well,” first-year Piedmont coach Shane Morrow said. “That propelled our offense. Our defense made our offense. Our defense was the key.”
Alexa Cranmer led Pleasant Valley with seven points. The Raiders finished with five field goals, including one Cranmer 3-pointer.
“The first half, we were 2-for-25 in the paint,” first-year Pleasant Valley coach Blake Muncher said. “You can’t win like that. I think we shot 13 percent overall, 5-for-39 inside the paint.
“We got quality looks. Fundamental wise, with things we’ve been working on, as far as our feet and everything, we did a lot better. I was proud of that. As always, our effort is good. We just struggled to score.”
PIEDMONT-FAITH CHRISTIAN BOYS
End 1Q: Piedmont leads Faith 25-8.
Halftime: Piedmont leads Faith 36-22.
End 3Q: Piedmont leads Faith 46-37. Faith got it down to 42-37.
Final: Piedmont wins, 56-49.
PIEDMONT 56, FAITH CHRISTIAN 49: Jaylen Brown led three Piedmont players in double figures with 16 points, and No. 6 Piedmont (12-7) fought off No. 11 Faith after dominating the first half.
“That was a tough one,” first-year Piedmont coach Matt Glover said.
Piedmont, which also got 15 points from Ishmael Bethel and 13 from Colton Procter, led 25-8 after the first quarter and 36-22 at halftime.
Faith, which pushed eventual champion Oxford in a 55-49 loss in this tournament a year ago, battled back in the second half. Led by Conner Richerzhagen’s 16 points and 14 from Carson Harris, the Lions closed to within 52-47 with four minutes to play and 57-53 near the one-minute mark.
“That first quarter kills us,” Faith coach Corey Hughes said. “We know that. We’ve preached that all year long the game’s 32 minutes. For us, we might take eight off here or four off there. I’d say probably half of our losses his year have come off a quarter of the game.”
Glover was the lastest first-year head coach to win in his first Calhoun County tourney game, joining Ohatchee’s Kyle Wilson (boys) and Aaron Jackson (girls), Saks’ Wes Ginn (boys) and Wellborn’s Ashlon Dempsey (girls).
“Growing up, I loved it,” said Glover, a long-time Piedmont assistant before his promotion in May of last year. I always came here as a child, watching it, so it is special.”
ALEXANDRIA-FAITH CHRISTIAN GIRLS
End 1Q: Alexandria scores the first 16 points, leads Faith 20-2.
Halftime: Alexandria leads, 29-13.
End 3Q: Alexandria leads, 45-19.
Final: Alexandria wins, 56-21.
ALEXANDRIA 56, FAITH CHRISTIAN 21: No. 5 Alexandria scored the game’s first 16 points and coasted into a quarterfinal showdown with Piedmont on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
“We got off to a fast start, but then we lost a little bit in the second and third quarters,” Alexandria coach Craig Kiker said. “That’s what I told them. We can’t worry about what the score is. We’ve got to be intense all the time.”
Samira Duncan led Alexandria with 14 points, and Allyssa Hunt added 13.
Anna Kate Robertson led Faith with six points. The Lions committed 26 turnovers.
On the upside, Ally Folsom made her first game appearance of the season after coming off of a knee injury suffered in the state volleyball tournament.
“We’re trying to limit her minutes a little bit,” Faith coach La’Ray Williams said. “She’ll get back in a rhythm. She’ll bounce back. It’s going to take some time to get her back to where she needs to be.”
Monday’s game also marked Williams’ latest at Jax State, where he played football. He’ll long be remembered for catching a key two-point conversion pass in the Gamecocks’ 2010 victory over Ole Miss.
“It means everything to me,” Williams said. “It’s Jacksonville State. I’m an alum. It’s where I spent four years, on the football field, obviously, but still, on this campus, this environment and this atmosphere. I just love to come back here and play.”
WHITE PLAINS-OHATCHEE BOYS
End 1Q: White Plains leads Ohatchee 12-4.
Halftime: White Plains leads Ohatchee 34-13.
End 3Q: White Plains leads Ohatchee, 54-23.
Final: White Plains wins, 66-32.
WHITE PLAINS 66, OHATCHEE 32: Cam Almon and Carter Johnson led a balanced performance with 10 points apiece, and No. 5 White Plains punched its ticket to the quarterfinals and a showdown with No. 4 Alexandria on Thursday at 1:30 p.m.
Thanks to the threat of hazardous winter weather and a revised schedule, the winners of Thursday’s two quarterfinal games will have to play semifinals later Thursday.
It was the thing that White Plains coach Chris Randall didn’t count on when he fought for the fifth seed at the seeding meeting, meaning the Wildcats will have to play a game before the quarterfinals. Top four seeds have byes to the quarterfinals.
“We hosted the seeding meeting … ,” he said. “I’m running the meeting, and I’m like, ‘Who needs to be the two. Coach (Matt) Glover at Piedmont says, ‘White Plains needs to be the two.’ I said, ‘Oh, no, no, no, we’re the five.
“I wanted this game. I wanted to get one run on the floor before we played the four seed.”
As for the revised schedule and the possibility of having to play twice in one day and two games in three days, Randall said, bring it on.
“This is my 23rd as a coach in the county tournament, and it’s never happened since I’ve been here,” he said. “We had to do it twice at Woodland, when Larry Strain was running the Christmas tournament years ago. Two or three years, we had to win two games in a day, but you do it in the summer all the time. Sometimes you play three or four in a day.
“You just do it, and it’s fun, man.”
As the Monday’s game, Colby Hester led Ohatchee with 13 points, and the Indians finished 1-1 in their first county tournament under first-year head coach Kyle Wilson.
“It was a great experience for our guys to play in this atmosphere,” Wilson said. “Obviously, it’s great preparation for area tournaments, learning what it takes to win and playing some good teams.”
