Stephens stellar for Faith
- Updated: January 16, 2015
Girls roundup: Oxford remains unbeaten in its area; Green goes for 28 in Piedmont victory
By Brant Locklier
For East Alabama Sports Today
It was all Madison Stephens Thursday night as she helped Faith Christian overcome a shaky stretch in the second quarter to roll past Sacred Heart 57-33.
The 5-foot-6 junior scored 31 points and had 23 in the first half to help the Lady Lions (7-11) open a 32-17 halftime lead after Sacred Heart cut an 11-0 deficit to 14-12 early in the second quarter. It was the third time this year she has had 30 or more in a game.
In the second half she was content to run the offense and, with five assists, had a direct hand in 17 points.
“It was not really planned,” she said of the role change. “We started running something different in the second half when we realized we were up so much. Coach (Bradley) Dawson told us to swing the ball around and work on our offense and that is what we did.
“Early on I struggled a little because my legs were tired and when my legs are hurting I have to work on shooting with the right form and doing things with the right form.”
Cornelia Simpson added 12 points to the Faith effort and Elizabeth McCullough had seven. Zainab Sanusi poured in 20 points and hauled down seven rebounds to lead Sacred Heart (1-10).
Stephens said she and her teammates are looking forward to homecoming Friday night against Wellborn and then playing Oxford in the county tournament Saturday at Jacksonville State.
Oxford 57, Chelsea 26
CHELSEA – It’s three down and one to go for the Lady Jackets (9-9) as they remain unbeaten in Class 6A Area 10. The win gave them a 3-0 mark in area play while Chelsea fell to 0-3. All that remains in the way of an Area Championship for the young Jackets is a Jan. 27 game at Pell City.
Oxford pounded the ball inside in the first quarter to Jordan Smith (six points), Ebony Kelley and Alexus Davis to take a 16-10 lead. Winter Taylor got going in the second quarter with three baskets and Kayla Kidd had a 3-pointer as the Jackets opened up the outside game with play on the boards.
Kidd had eight second-half points and ended up with 11 for the game, while Taylor scored nine. The Jackets got a combined 22 points down in the low post from their Big Three — Smith (8), Davis (7) and Kelley (7).
The Lady Jackets are 6-3 in their last nine games and will open with Faith Christian in the county tourney Saturday at noon. — Brant Locklier
Piedmont 56, Saks 40
Bre Green scored 19 of her season-high 28 points in the second half as the Bulldogs pulled away in a game that was tied at halftime.
Green had 10 points in the third quarter and nine in the fourth that included 7-of-12 from the free throw line. She also had five rebounds, four assists and five steals in the game.
“She is just controlling our offense and defense, and she is so hard to guard because she is court smart,” Piedmont coach Terrace Ridley said. “Her teammates feed off her.”
Breanne Brazier had seven points, seven rebounds and four steals, while Keshauna Jones grabbed three rebounds.
GIRLS BOX SCORES
Faith Christian 57, Sacred Heart 33
SACRED HEART — Zainab Sanusi 9 2-3 20, Anna Kerper 0 0-0 0, Jayla Woods 0 0-1 0, Jarece Tillory 2 2-2 6, Megan Lott 2 1-1 5, Monique Oblena 0 2-4 2, Jacque Beyerle 0 0-0 0, Morgan Calloway 0 0-2 0, Cameron Spence 0 0-2 0, Christina Stephens 0 0-0 0. Totals: 13 7-15 33.
FAITH CHRISTIAN (6-12) – Logan Boyd 0 0-0 0, Emily Sills 1 1-2 3, Madison Stephens 10 7-10 31, Montana Huie 0 2-2 2, Elizabeth McCullough 3 1-3 7, Reagan Crosby 0 2-2 2, Cornelia Simpson 5 2-6 12, Totals 19 15-25 57.
Sacred Heart 5 12 8 8 — 33
Faith Christian 12 20 11 14 — 57
3-point goals: Faith Christian 4 (Stephens 4). Total fouls: Sacred Heart 24, Faith Christian 13. Fouled out: Oblena, Spence.
Piedmont 56, Saks 40
PIEDMONT — Amber Gowens 0 0-0 0, Sydney Prater 2 1-2 6, Breanna Brazier 3 0-3 7, Bre Green 9 8-14 28, Keshauna Jones 1 0-0 3, Lulu Jackson 3 0-0 6, Carlie Flowers 3 0-0 6, Erin Ray 0 0-0 0, Kaitlyn Ridley 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 9-19 56.
SAKS — Talisa Christian 1 0-0 2, Aliyah Simmons 4 1-6 9, Jordan Briskey 0 3-4 3, Maiya Northard 3 1-4 9, Miracle Dennard 0 0-0 0, Teetee Jenkins 1 0-2 2, Bre Browning 0 0-0 0, Daja Johnson 6 2-2 15. Totals 15 7-17 40.
Piedmont 14 7 18 17 — 56
Saks 10 11 10 9 — 40
3-point goals: Piedmont 4 (Prater, Brazier, Green 2, Jones); Saks 3 (Northard 2, Johnson). Total fouls: Piedmont 15, Saks 17.
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