Sharp focus

By EASportsToday.com
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Updated: November 28, 2016

Sacred Heart overwhelms another 1A area opponent for its seventh straight win, finds the focus it shows when playing higher-caliber foes

Sacred Heart guard D.J. Heath brings the ball up the floor as the Cardinals have another area game well in hand. Heath finished this possession with a basket as part of a 41-point night. (All photos by Kristen Stringer/Krisp Pics Photography)

By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today

JACKSONVILLE – The biggest games on Sacred Heart’s basketball schedule are the ones that give the Cardinals a place on the national landscape, but in the grand scheme of things they aren’t necessarily the most important games.

Those are the ones that have everything to do with keeping the Cardinals on the road to the state’s Class 1A Final Four.

But you have to show up ready to play them all. The challenge is to maintain a consistent focus, especially when the games that impact their chances for a third straight state championship are ones they are heavily favored in, win by eye-popping margins and could be taken for granted.

After picking up two wins in a nationally recognized showcase in Atlanta over the weekend, the Cardinals were back in their 1A element Monday night and took a necessary 97-59 victory from Jacksonville Christian.

They have now won seven in a row after losing their season-opening marquee matchup with reigning 5A state champion Jemison. Two of the wins have been Class 1A Area 10 games by a combined margin of 115 points, a 3-pointer away of scoring 100 points in both games. They have not lost to an Alabama 1A opponent since the 2014 state semifinals.

“We are having to get focused in two different ways where most teams are getting focused only in one way,” Cardinals coach Ralph Graves said. “You have another team that will get focused in their area play and worried about their state tournament and how they’re going to do things right now. We are also, but we’re also competing on a national level where we can show people we can play on a national level, which has nothing to do with what we’re doing on the state level.

“Tonight was an area game, which is just as important, because we want to continue to win state championships here. Our boys know what’s at stake and they know the focus that they need. Probably tonight, looking at this, knowing them, they’re not satisfied with the effort they put out tonight and that’s a good thing.”

Unlike their area opener when they jumped out front of Donoho 43-3, playing senior guard and Samford signee Kevion Nolan (back strain) the Cardinals were locked in a tight game early before pulling away for the expected result.

Reed Murphy kept JCA within four in the opening quarter with 13 of his team-high 31 points, but Sacred Heart’s Diante Wood and D.J. Heath took over in a 35-point second quarter that powered the Cardinals to a 57-30 halftime lead.

Heath scored 15 of his game-high 41 points and had two of his seven 3-pointers in the second quarter. Wood had 11 of his 22 and four of his six first-half blocked shots in the quarter. They scored the Cardinals’ first 19 points and outscored the Thunder by 10 at the half.

“We weren’t really focused at the beginning of the game,” Wood said. “We were slacking on a lot of things. We weren’t competing hard and playing hard and we didn’t wake up until the second half.

“When we play with focus like that we play great, as a team better, more as one, more as a unit, and we just all come together and get wins.”

The Cardinals’ focus will be tested again Tuesday – this time with the additional factor of fatigue – when they play another area game against Faith Christian. It will be their fourth game in five days.

“That is pretty tough, but that is what’s on the schedule,” Graves said.

JCA coach Tommy Miller watches intently as Walker Messer (10) tries to escape the trap set by Sacred Heart’s Diante Wood and D.J. Heath (5).

JCA girls 60, Sacred Heart 53

The Lady Thunder used a big second half to win their area opener. They trailed by nine at halftime, but outscored the Lady Cardinals 19-4 in the third quarter and 31-15 in the second half.

They did it with Haley Moses and Sidney Hancock on the inside and Kayla Barnes and Briah Cupp on the outside. All four scored in double figures to offset a 30-point game by Sacred Heart’s Myiah Harris.

Harris hit eight 3-pointers in the game. She has 29 treys in seven games this season and is averaging 24.3 points a game. She has been held under 20 only once.

BOYS GAME
Sacred Heart 97, Jacksonville Christian 59

SACRED HEART (7-1, 2-0) – Jaylon Croft 1 0-0 3, Diante Wood 10 1-1 22, Murdock Simmons 4 4-4 12, D.J. Heath 15 4-9 41, Caleb Lafollette 1 0-0 3, Dakota Myers 6 0-0 12, Stephen Stancil 1 0-0 2, Jon Riley Miller 0 0-0 0, Khalil Watkins 1 0-0 2. Totals 39 9-14 97.

JCA – Elijah McCormack 0 0-0 0, Walker Messer 6 1-2 13, Kobe Messer 3 1-4 9, Nash Messer 0 2-2 2, Jayden Mitchell 2 0-0 4, Chase Cobb 0 0-0 0, Reed Murphy 14 3-9 31, Justin Tignor 0 0-0 0. Totals 25 7-17 59.

Sacred Heart 22 35 27 13 — 97
Jax Christian 18 12 16 13 — 59

3-point goals: Sacred Heart 10 (Croft, Wood, Heath 7, Lafollette); JCA 2 (K. Messer 2). Technical fouls: Sacred Heart (scorebook error). Total fouls: Sacred Heart 15, JCA 12.

GIRLS GAME
Jacksonville Christian 60, Sacred Heart 53

SACRED HEART (2-5, 1-1) – Abbie Vingers 3 0-0 7, Sophia Allen 0 0-0 0, Sydney Merion 0 0-0 0, Ayanna Foster 6 2-11 14, Angel Nguyen 1 0-0 2, Jacque Beyerle 0 0-0 0, Andrea Torres 0 0-0 0, Myiah Harris 10 2-2 30. Totals 20 4-13 53.

JCA (2-1, 1-0) – Kylie Cupp 1 0-0 2, Mia Morales 0 0-0 0, Haley Moses 8 1-5 17, Briah Cupp 5 0-2 10, Elizabeth Goss 1 0-0 2, Kayla Barnes 6 3-10 19, Maci Barnwell 0 0-0 0, Sidney Hancock 4 2-4 10. Totals 25 6-21 60.

Sacred Heart 19 19 4 11 — 53
Jax Christian 19 10 19 12 — 60

3-point goals: Sacred Heart 9 (Vingers, Harris 8); JCA 4 (Barnes 4). Fouled out: Foster. Total fouls: Sacred Heart 18, JCA 12. Officials: Burroughs, D. Davis, L. Davis.