Dawgs fly past Wildcats
- Updated: December 4, 2018
Anniston spreads the floor late in the game to give its best operators room to work, plan helps Bulldogs avoid another White Plains stunner
Anniston’s Antonio Kite (4) and Hunter Rouse trap White Plains’ Simeon Shadrix in the corner. (Photo by B.J. Franklin)
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
With about six and a half left in Tuesday night’s game, White Plains seemed to be moving in position to claim a second big-name county basketball scalp in a four-day stretch.
The Wildcats, who stunned Oxford on Friday night, trailed Anniston by three in a game they led early and kept close throughout. With one final push they might have been able to pull off the double.
But then the Bulldogs spread the floor. They pinned their hopes to the tail of their Kite and let it fly.
Behind freshman Antonio (Spoodie) Kite, the next county’s best player of the next four years, the Bulldogs pulled away to score a 70-58 victory.
The idea of spreading the floor wasn’t to milk the clock, but to give Kite and William Fairley more room to work. Both players found openings on the floor for layups, scoring 13 of the Bulldogs’ last 17 points.
“We came out in our zone and they ate it up,” Bulldogs coach Torry Brown said. “Our inside game wasn’t really working the way it normally is against most teams; they did a really good job digging it out of there.
“So we tried to spread them out and see if we could go around them since we couldn’t go inside and create more space for Antonio and William to get in there and create for themselves.”
It was a 55-52 when it really kicked in. Kite created a 3-pointer for Kwame Milton, Fairley created a couple and-one layups and Kite went hard to the basket. And just that fast the lead moved to 13.
That’s the way Spoodie can influence a game. It should be a real treat Saturday night when the Bulldogs play Sacred Heart with its high-star junior guard Jayden Stone.
“When they stretched it I felt like the best player in the game was Kite,” White Plains coach Chris Randall said. “When we didn’t help he laid it up, when we helped they made a 3.
“It was either him making shots or him making the right basketball play. He’s special. He’s different. And he’s just a freshman. He was definitely the difference.”
Kite finished with 16 points and six assists. Fairley tacked on 15 points, `12 in the second half. Milton led all scorers with 21 points, starting out with four 3-pointers before attacking the basket in the second half.
“We just had to execute,” Kite said. “We had to come in as a team, play defense and get stops. I had to get my teammates the ball. I just had to dig.”
Brody Baker and Simeon Shadrix led White Plains with 16 and 15, respectively, but both were shut out in the fourth quarter. Shadrix hit three 3-pointers in the first quarter, sparking the Wildcats to an early 17-9 lead.
Anniston 70, White Plains 58
ANNISTON – Antonio Kite 5 5-5 16, Ladreka Hall 4 0-0 8, Kwame Milton 8 0-0 21, Malcolm Harvey 2 0-2 4, William Fairley 6 1-1 15, Hunter Rouse 1 2-3 4, Theron Montgomery 0 2-2 2, Jordan Ferrell 0 0-0 0. Totals 26 10-11 70.
WHITE PLAINS – Houston Conger 0 0-1 0, Quin Wilson 1 0-0 2, Jaden Chatman 1 4-6 6, Simeon Shadrix 6 0-0 15, Jacob Wheeler 0 0-0 0, Brody Baker 7 0-0 16, Matthew Clay 3 4-4 10, Jaden Harris 1 0-0 2, Kahlil Williams 0 2-2 2, Gavin Burrage 2 1-2 5. Totals 21 11-15 58.
Anniston 15 13 23 19 – 70
White Plains 20 10 15 13 – 58
3-point goals: Anniston 8 (Kite, Milton 5, Fairley 2); White Plains 5 (Shadrix 3, Baker 2). Fouled out: Harvey, Fairley. Total fouls: Anniston 20, White Plains 18. Officials: Burroughs, Howell, Kelley.
Anniston’s Kwame Milton (12) led all scorers Tuesday night with 21 points. He started out nailing the 3, which opened things up for him to drive the ball in the third quarter. (Photo by B.J. Franklin)
On the cover, Anniston freshman Antonio (Spoodie) Kite considers his options before putting a play in motion. To see more photos from the game visit www.bjfranklin.smugmug.com
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