Sacred Heart survives
- Updated: February 29, 2016
Cardinals overcome late deficit to take down Keith and give themselves a chance at a second straight state championship
Diante Wood soars through the air for a first-half dunk Friday. On the cover he displays his ballhandling skills. Wood had 17 points and 12 rebounds and after the game reportedly received a scholarship offer from Samford. (Photos by Kristen Stringer/Krisp Pics Photography).
By Jason Katz
For East Alabama Sports Today
BIRMINGHAM – 11-0. For some, it’s a score. For others, it’s nothing but a number.
For the Sacred Heart Cardinals, 11-0 was the difference in getting the chance to play for another state championship or returning to Anniston empty-handed.
With three minutes left in their Class 1A semifinal Monday, the Cardinals went on an 11-0 run to pull away from Central Region champion Keith and win 75-67 to return to the championship game for the second year in a row.
The Cardinals (28-8) will play once-beaten Georgiana (30-1) for the championship in the BJCC’s Legacy Arena Thursday at 5:45 p.m.
“Keith played so well and that was expected,” Cardinals head coach Ralph Graves said. “I wouldn’t say so much we survived that game, but we overcame, and that is a tribute to our players who have worked through games like this before and today did just that.
“I think if you read our team you could see the resilience and perseverance those kids have to never stop believing. That’s not a talent, that’s a gift.”
The circumstances reminded Graves of the Calhoun County Tournament championship game when the Cardinals fought back from an early deficit but wound up losing to Anniston. The difference this time was the Cardinals won on the scoreboard.
“We were down the whole game and our kids kept fighting, same effort same everything,” Graves said. “The difference is this time we won on the scoreboard. Our kids are really battle tested. To see them go out there and make plays like that … I think that (county loss) was the best thing that ever happened to us.”
This game was a high-energy slugfest between two teams that play at a much higher level than their 1A counterparts.
Players like John Pettway from Keith and Kevion Nolan from Sacred Heart were extravagant in their ball handling and suffocating in their defense, especially in the second half.
The Cardinals trailed by five with 4:57 to play. As the clock continued to tick with three minutes left, they were down 64-62 and something had to give.
They tied it at 64 on two free throws by Nolan with 2:50 to play then the Cardinals called a time out to set their end game in motion.
“We were in the timeout and I said, ‘Murdock (Simmons), you have to make a play,’” Graves explained, “and right after that we got a deflection and made a layup and then we looked around and said if Murdock’s on the floor like that we’re here to win.”
Before the run was through, D.J. Heath hit two free throws, Kavarri Ross had a steal that Simmons converted into a layup, Nolan hit three free throws and Simmons made two.
Nolan had not scored in the first half, but had 20 in the second half, including eight in the last four minutes of the game.
“I just didn’t want to go home and I knew none of my teammates wanted to either,” Nolan said. “We have battled through adversity all season with a difficult schedule that has groomed us for big moments like that one. I wanted to step up for my team and myself and be the difference in the end.”
The day might have been one-sided as Nolan and Diante Wood could not get many shots to fall in the first half. But, while some players did not get in the groove early others stepped in to take their place.
D.J. Heath held the Cardinals together early as he put together a 17-point first half that kept Sacred Heart from getting too far behind. The Cardinals were up 35-34 at halftime.
“I knew as I looked around in the first half that my teammates were not quite in rhythm,” Heath said. “I just played my best and knew eventually they would pick it up and we could go for the W, but we are a team and that is what teammates do.”
Keith’s John Pettway, a South Alabama commit and cousin to University of Alabama assistant Antoine Pettway (who was in attendance), was electric with 34 points; he virtually took over the third quarter. Junior Jimmy Powell had 12 points, while massive center Morris Collins scored eight points with five rebounds.
“They played us tough and Pettway was on fire,” Wood said. “Collins down low was tough early because he was so big, but D.J. was key to keeping us in early and allowed us to get settled in and win the second half and then win the game.”
Heath led all Sacred Heart scorers with 24 points; he was 9-for-11 from the field. Nolan’s 20 included 9-of-11 from the free throw line. Wood had 17 while Ross scored eight.
“We play such a tough schedule during the regular season to prepare us for these big games and we are always at a disadvantage,” Graves said. “We are resilient and hard-working to get us to this level and I think that Thursday in the championship game we will throw the ball up and play. That is all we want to do, just play our game.”
Sacred Heart 75, Keith 67
KEITH (26-7) – Dontavius Thomas 2-6 0-0 6, John Pettway 13-25 7-10 34, Mark Young 0-1 0-1 0, Dalven Johnson 0-5 0-0 0, Jimmy Powell 5-6 2-2 12, Justyn Pettway 3-7 1-3 7, Devion Johnson 0-1 0-0 0, Domonique Jones 0-0 0-0 0, Terrance Underwood 0-0 0-0 0, Morris Collins 4-7 0-0 8. Totals 27-58 10-16 67.
SACRED HEART (28-8) – Diante Wood 4-11 9-9 17, Kavarri Ross 1-11 5-6 8, Samuel Miller 1-1 0-1 2, D.J. Heath 9-11 4-7 24, Kevion Nolan 4-14 9-11 20, Murdock Simmons 1-5 2-3 4, Stephen Stansil 0-0 0-0 0, JonRiley Miller 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-53 29-37 75.
Keith 15 19 16 17 — 67
Sacred Heart 20 15 14 26 — 75
3-point goals: Keith 3-7 (Thomas 2-3, Pettway 1-4); Sacred Heart 6-25 (Wood 0-1, Ross 1-7, Heath 2-3, Nolan 3-11, Simmons 0-3). Rebounds: Keith 37 (Pettway 10, Johnson 8); Sacred Heart 39 (Wood 12, Simmons 7). Fouled out: Johnson. Total fouls: Keith 28, Sacred Heart 18. Officials: Pat Jolly, Richard Taylor, Elliott Carr.
D.J. Heath flies down the lane for a layup in front of Keith’s John Pettway (11). Heath scored 24 points for Sacred Heart, while Pettway led all scorers with 34. (Photo by Kristen Stringer/Krisp Pics Photography)
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