January 28, 2022
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
Boys roundup: Jacksonville uses big fourth quarter to finally pull away from No. 1 Plainview; Alexandria dumps Anniston, and more
THURSDAY’S BOYS GAMES
Alexandria 65, Anniston 46
Jacksonville 82, Plainview 77
Jacksonville Christian 53, Donoho 52
Munford 51, Wellborn 28
Piedmont 46, White Plains 40
West End 66, Pleasant Valley 46
St. Clair County Tournament
At Springville
Boys Bracket
Victory Christian-Ashville winner vs. Springville, 8 p.m.
JACKSONVILLE — Jacksonville didn’t lead a lot in its late-season showdown with Plainview Thursday night, but the Golden Eagles led when it counted.
At the end.
After coming back to get close so many times in the game, the Golden Eagles finally overtook the Bears for good with 3:03 to play and held on to beat the No. 1 3A team in the state 82-77.
The Golden Eagles, ranked No. 4 in 4A by MaxPreps, scored 27 points in the fourth quarter to secure their first win over a No. 1 basketball team in recent memory. They trailed by 10 three minutes into the second half.
“We never lost confidence,” junior guard John Broom said. “We stayed together as a team. It was a 12-man job to win the game.”
“We just had to keep on pushing, we couldn’t stop,” Cam Johnson added. “We didn’t give up. I just knew we could do it if we didn’t stop and kept on pushing.”
The Golden Eagles (19-5) led only one other time before the fourth quarter, and that was for all of about 20 seconds. They went ahead 21-20 on Broom’s layup with 6:35 left in the second quarter that looked awfully close to a travel.
But just as they had done so many times when Jacksonville got close, the Bears (22-6) turned the Golden Eagles over — on five of the next six possessions — to fuel a 12-0 run that gave them a 32-21 lead.
You got a sense early it was going to be like that. The Golden Eagles fell behind 12-2 out of the gate, then staged their own 15-5 rally to tie it before Jonah Williams hit three free throws with three-tenths of a second left in the first quarter to give Plainview a 20-17 lead.
The Golden Eagles were glad to get the game when Plainview called because they needed to see a high-quality team with the kind of pressure the Bears could bring to bear. Likewise, Plainview was hoping to face a quality big man before setting its sights on the postseason.
Jacksonville got what it needed, Plainview did not outside of playing another quality opponent.
Whenever the Bears would stretch the lead, it would come through a series of turnovers or a 3-pointer. They were 11-of-33 from behind the arc in the game. Jacksonville was without 6-9 junior Cade Phillips once again (foot), and Quin Long as well (non-COVID illness).
Plainview grabbed a seven-point halftime lead. The Golden Eagles got back to within three in the third quarter, then Plainview pushed it back to 10. Jacksonville got back within one, Plainview pushed it back to seven.
The Golden Eagles tied it in the fourth quarter at 66 on Johnson’s layup and 68 on a Devin Barksdale’s runner before Barksdale put them ahead for good on a 3-pointer with 3:03 to play. They extended the lead on Johnson’s put-back and Broom’s steal and dunk.
Plainview got as close as two down the stretch, then Jacksonville closed it out with five free throws in the final 34 seconds.
“We kept fighting back; it felt like we were behind the whole game,” Jacksonville coach Shane Morrow said. “I told the guys I’m just proud of them for fighting back; they never quit. That’s a really, really good team; they’ll go a long way in 3A. I’m tickled to death they fought back, came back and won. That’s a big win for us.”
Broom led Jacksonville with 28 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots. He was 11-of-13 from the field and 5-for-5 from the line. Johnson had 18 points – nine in the final five minutes – and Caden Johnson had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Eight of the 10 Golden Eagles who played scored.
“They are very skilled,” Plainview coach Robi Coker said. “Not to take anything away from the Phillips kid, but I’ve watched them a couple times and they are very good even without him. Obviously, he takes them to another level with his size and athleticism. I told my team 1 through 8 they may be the most skilled team in the state of Alabama in any classification.
“Give them a lot of credit for their resiliency. I thought we had them on the ropes in the third quarter up 10 and after the timeout they kind of hit us in the mouth. I thought they did a great job of keeping their composure. They really did a good job of taking it to us in the fourth quarter.”
Jacksonville 82, Plainview 77
JACKSONVILLE (19-5) – John Broom 11-3 5-5 28, Camren Johnson 6-9 3-3 18, Caden Johnson 5-10 0-0 12, JaLeik Long 3-9 1-2 8, Julian Hill 3-8 1-2 7, Devin Barksdale 2-4 0-0 5, Ethan Duke 1-2 0-0 2, Jacoby Zackery 1-4 0-0 2, JaeTaj Morris 0-0 0-0 0, Hayden Robinson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 32-60 10-12 82.
PLAINVIEW (22-6) – Jonah Williams 6-16 4-4 21, Cole Millican 8-18 0-0 18, Landon White 6-6 0-2 12, Luke Smith 4-11 0-0 9, Dylan Haymon 2-6 0-0 5, Ty Griggs 2-2 0-0 5, Levin Brown 1-3 2-2 4, Bryce Luther 1-2 0-0 3, Sawyer Fraley 0-0 0-0 0, Owen Wilborn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-64 6-8 77.
Jacksonville 17 13 25 27 – 82
Plainview 20 17 22 18 – 77
3-point goals: Plainview 11-33 (Williams 5-14, Millican 2-8, Smith 1-3, Haymon 1-3, Griggs 1-1, Brown 0-2, Luther 1-2); Jacksonville 8-21 (Broom 1-3, Cm. Johnson 3-4, Cd. Johnson 2-5, Long 1-4, Hill 0-1, Barksdale 1-3, Zackery 0-1). Rebounds: Plainview 27 (Millican 6, Smith 6); Jacksonville 36 (Cd. Johnson 12, Broom 6, Cm. Johnson 6). Total fouls: Plainview 14, Jacksonville 9. Officials: Wood, Douthitt, Robinson.
ALEXANDRIA 63, ANNISTON 46: D’Anthony Walton recovered from a slow start in the first quarter to score 15 of his game-high 22 points in the middle two quarters as the Valley Cubs pulled away from what ostensibly was the Calhoun County Tournament consolation game.
Both teams lost in the tournament semifinals last Thursday, Alexandria falling to top-seeded Jacksonville and Anniston to eventual tournament champion Oxford.
Walton, who also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, wasn’t the only Valley Cubs player to score in double figures. Julian Wright and Collin Taylor both scored 14 points and Javais McGhee had 10. McGhee also grabbed seven rebounds and dished six assists. Antonio Kite led Anniston with 15.
Alexandria 65, Anniston 46
ALEXANDRIA (11-4) – Javais McGhee 5-10 0-0 10, D’Anthony Walton 9-10 5-9 24, Collin Taylor 4 3-5 14, Evan Snow 0 0-0 0, Kory Cargal 0-2 1-2 1, Julian Wright 5-7 4-8 14, Braxton Tucker 1-2 0-2 2, Damon Parr 0-0 0-0 0., Evan Snow 0-1 0-0 0, Javarious Williams 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-46 13-27 63.
ANNISTON – Jayden Lewis 0 0-0 0, Anthony Kite 7-9 1-4 15, Tadyn Jones 3-10 2-2 11, Montez Reed 1-6 0-0 3, Tacrise Thomas 0-1 0-0 0, jave Croft 0-1 0-0 0, Troy Hall 0-0 0-0 0, Jayden Lewis 0-1 0-0 0, Kam Sandlin 2-4 0-0 4, Talib Christian 2-3 0-0 4, C.J. Munford 4-9 0-0 9, Malik Beisley 0-0 0-0 0, Jamarius Billingsley 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-44 3-7 46.
Alexandria 15 17 18 13 – 65
Anniston 17 9 9 11 – 46
3-point goals: Alexandria 4-14 (Walton 1-5, Taylor 3-6, McGhee 0-2, Cargal 0-1); Anniston 5-24 (Jones 3-10, Reed 1-6, Munford 1-5, Christian 0-1, Thomas 0-1, Lewis 0-1). Rebounds: Alexandria 34 (Walton 11, McGhee 7, Cargal 6); Anniston 27 (Thomas 5). Total fouls: Alexandria 10, Anniston 23. Officials: Smith, Whiteside, Ware.
PIEDMONT 46, WHITE PLAINS 40: Alex Odam scored 20 points and the Bulldogs went 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to hold off the Wildcats. Piedmont went 8-for-8 from the line as a team in the second half.
Walker Osteen led White Plains with 17 points and the Wildcats’ only scorer in double figures. Osteen and Luke Bussey both hit three 3-pointers.
Piedmont 46, White Plains 40
WHITE PLAINS – Paul Laube 0 0-0 0, Dylan Barksdale 2 1-2 5, Cole Senciboy 0 0-0 0, Josh Wheeler 2 3-4 7, Z.J. Rosario 1 0-0 2, Braden Knight 0 0-0 0, Daniel Williams 0 0-0 0, Walker Osteen 7 0-0 17, Kendrick Ball 0 0-0 0, Luke Bussey 3 0-0 9. Totals 15 4-6 40.
PIEDMONT – Alex Odam 6 6-6 20, Omarion Foster 1 2-2 4, Gavin Lawler 1 0-0 3, Cassius Fairs 2 0-2 9, Cole Wilson 0 0-0 0, Ish Bethel 4 0-0 9, Chance Murphy 3 0-1 6, Coleman Reid 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 8-11 46.
White Plains 12 8 10 10 – 40
Piedmont 12 15 13 6 – 46
3-point goals: White Plains 6 (Osteen 3, Bussey 3); Piedmont 4 (Odam 2, Lawler, Bethel). Total fouls: White Plains 12, Piedmont 8. Officials: Kelley, Jarrett, Batey.
MUNFORD 51, WELLBORN 28: Lathan Stephens hit three 3-pointers on the way to 13 points, Jaquan Anderson had a game-high 20 and Munford held its hosts to one point in the first quarter. Stephens got hot in the second quarter as he scored eight in a 20-point quarter that help the Lions pull away.
Munford 51, Wellborn 28
MUNFORD – Jaquan Anderson 6 6-7 20, Caderio Holland 0 0-0 0, Jacoby Young 1 0-0 2, Connor Morgan 4 0-0 9, Jaiden Turner 0 0-0 0, Demetrius Norwood 0 0-0 0, Lathan Stephens 5 0-3 13, B.J. Anderson 1 0-0 2, Alex Petty 0 1-2 1, Kelby Tucker 0 0-0 0, Daniel Beckman 0 0-0 0, Kyler Gibson 2 0-0 4, Logan Smith 0 0-0 0, Austin Wynn 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 7-12 51.
WELLBORN – Messiah Moore 1 0-0 3, Xavier Parker 0 0-0 0, Kameron Jackson 2 5-14 9, John Searcey 0 0-1 0, Trey Downs 2 1-4 5, Avery Odom 1 5-8 7, Jeremiah Scarbrough 2 0-1 4. Totals 8 11-28 28.
Munford 7 20 14 10 – 51
Wellborn 1 7 10 10 – 28
3-point goals: Munford 6 (Anderson 2, Morgan, Stephens 3); Wellborn 1 (Moore). Total fouls: Munford 20, Wellborn 8. Officials: Warren.
JACKSONVILLE CHRISTIAN 53, DONOHO 52: Ethan Fair scored 31 points and grabbed nine rebounds and the Thunder got a defensive stop in the final three seconds to hold off Donoho and force a coin toss with the Falcons to avoid the play-in game in their upcoming area tournament.
The Thunder made it tough on themselves by missing 11 free throws in the second half, including two with eight seconds left, but held their breath as the Falcons turned it over in the closing seconds. The teams will flip next week to determine the 3 and 4 seeds in their five-team area tournament.
Tyler Doggrell scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds for the Thunder (11-11, 3-5), while Brodie Clay had eight points and eight rebounds. [**read more]
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