Monday’s boys roundup
- Updated: December 17, 2018
JCA wins shootout with Donoho, Vinson dominant again; Oxford rallies for sixth straight, Piedmont edges White Plains in OT, Ohatchee’s Keller has big night; Weaver, Anniston win big
MONDAY’S BOYS SCORES
Anniston 69, Jacksonville 36
Hokes Bluff at Pleasant Valley
Jacksonville Christian 93, Donoho 85
Oxford 65, Gadsden City 56
Piedmont 46, White Plains 45 (OT)
Plainview 67, Spring Garden 59
Ranburne 52, Wadley 38
Ohatchee 77, Ragland 57
Talladega 78, Cleburne County 51
Weaver 81, Wellborn 40
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
It may have looked like a lot fun from the stands and even felt like fun to the players on the floor, but that’s not at all the way Jacksonville Christian basketball coach Tommy Miller would have described the Thunder’s 93-85 area victory over Donoho Monday night.
Folks who like offense absolutely loved the shootout between the Class 1A private schools. Nine players scored in double figures, including all five JCA starters, and five went for 20 or more. There were 17 3-pointers in the game, 13 by Donoho.
JCA post Chase Vinson filled the box score with 23 points, 18 rebounds and seven blocked shots. Nash Messer had 23 points for the Thunder and fellow JCA starters Eli Fair, Kobe Messer and Jonathan Carter scored 10, 16 and 13, respectively.
Donoho got six 3-pointers and 24 points from Seth Ford, a game-high 25 points from Amari Smedley and 21 from Jacob LeCroy. Rod Elston added 13 for the Falcons.
But for all the points that were scored in the game, it was so close every possession could have been a game-changer.
“It wasn’t a whole lot of fun for me, I was nervous,” Miller said. “They had fun I think, but it was a chore for me because of the intensity, the tension.
“I used to tell people you can’t enjoy the County Tournament until you get put out, then you can sit up there and enjoy it; it was that type feeling. It was a big area game and Donoho has a good team.”
JCA (9-3) went out early 8-1 with Vinson scoring its first three baskets of the game and the Thunder led by nine in the second quarter, but the way Ford kept hitting 3-pointers no lead was safe. It was a five-point game at halftime and a three-point game after three quarters.
It was a three-point game with 1:20 left, then Donoho’s lack of depth caught up to it. The Falcons dressed only seven players and two of those had fouled out by that stage of the game.
The Thunder really started attacking the basket at that point, scoring layups and getting to the free throw line and pulled away.
Two key players in the Falcons’ rotation, brothers Reid and Charlie Williamon, weren’t available after their involvement in a serious car accident driving to practice Thursday. Charlie’s injuries will keep him out for the season, while Reid could return soon. Reid was on the bench cheering on his teammates Monday night.
In the meantime Falcons coach Jeremy Satcher is filling the gaps with varsity reserves who hadn’t seen a lot of action.
“It wasn’t difficult at all to bring them up because we train on defense first, we just didn’t play defense first today,” Satcher said. “Well, we didn’t play defense the whole game first.”
Vinson’s presence was clearly the difference in the game. The 6-5 junior is making a concerted effort to be more aggressive this season and had seven of his rebounds in the fourth quarter. In one exchange in the third quarter he blocked three straight shots under the basket without moving as much as a foot.
Vinson said he had fun in the game.
“What I would say about Chase more than anything is how far he has come since last year,” Miller said. “He has a lot of playground basketball in him and he’s buying into playing fundamental basketball now and doing what we need to do to win. He’s a threat inside against a lot of people and he’s a presence against a guy who’s going to drive on defense. He’s just come a long way from where he was last year. He’s really becoming a presence and tonight that was a big difference in the ballgame.”
Jacksonville Christian 93, Donoho 85
JCA (9-3) – Tanner Wilson 1 1-2 3, Jeremy Cockrell 0 1-3 1, Chase Vinson 7 9-11 23, Brady Shaddix 2 0-3 4, Eli Fair 5 0-0 10, Nash Messer 10 2-4 23, Kobe Messer 4 5-6 16, Jonathan Carter 6 1-4 13. Totals 35 19-33 93.
DONOHO (3-4) – Seth Ford 7 4-4 24, Amari Smedley 9 3-4 25, Rod Elston 5 0-2 13, Jacob LeCroy 7 7-8 21, Chandler Armstrong 0 0-1 0, Delarri Garrett 0 2-2 2, Jamal Musa 0 0-0 0. Totals 28 16-21 85.
JCA 21 32 22 18 – 93
Donoho 20 28 24 13 – 85
3-point goals: JCA 4 (N. Messer, K. Messer 3); Donoho 13 (Ford 6, Smedley 4, Elston 3). Technical fouls: JCA coach Miller. Fouled out: Armstrong, Garrett. Total fouls: JCA 18, Donoho 24. Officials: Holmes, Roberts, Smith.
Oxford 65, Gadsden City 56
GADSDEN – The Yellow Jackets got off to a slow start but picked up the pace as the game went on and was clicking on all cylinders by the time they pulled away in the fourth quarter for their sixth straight victory.
The Yellow Jackets got off to a slow start but picked up the pace as the game went on and was clicking on all cylinders by the time they pulled away in the fourth quarter for their sixth straight victory.
Oxford (9-3) trailed by 10 on at least two occasions early in the game, but as the game went on they started getting contributions across the board.
The Jackets were led in scoring by 6-foot-7 Zondrick Garrett’s 20 points, but Roc Taylor had 14 and Eugene Leonard had 13. Leonard had nine points in the second quarter as the Jackets fought back to get it within two at halftime.
Garrett had eight in the fourth quarter, including two of his three 3-pointers, as the Jackets erased a 49-46 deficit. Taylor also took some nice feeds from his teammates for layups in the quarter.
“This time of year you’ve got finals going on and you’re finishing up school and all of a sudden your routines are changed, so it’s a challenge for young guys and I thought as a team we started out little sluggish and a lot of that is because I’ve been trying to give them time off to rest,” Oxford coach Joel VanMeter said. “It was just a great team effort where maybe we didn’t start out as well as we wanted but we’ve learned to grind it out whenever we’re not playing perfect.”
The Jackets’ 9-3 record matches their best mark under VanMeter heading into the Christmas break and holiday tournament stretch of the schedule.
Oxford 65, Gadsden City 56
OXFORD – Rylan Houck 0 0-0 0, Zondrick Garrett 8 1-5 20, Eugene Leonard 6 0-0 13, Mont McClendon 3 1-2 9, Kobe Warren 1 3-5 5, Roc Taylor 6 2-2 14, Justin Moore 2 0-1 4. Totals 26 7-15 65.
GADSDEN CITY – Zachary Morgan 0 0-0 0, Corlyn Pearson 7 0-1 16, John Woods 2 0-0 4, Jamontez Woods 1 0-0 2, DeMarcus Macon 1 0-0 2, Cameron Williams 1 0-0 3, Quinton Densmore 0 0-0 0, Jalon Huff 0 0-0 0, Roderick Orr 0 0-2 0, Calvin Williams 5 2-4 12, Demetrius Huff 8 1-2 17. Totals 25 3-9 56.
Oxford 9 19 18 19 – 65
Gadsden City 16 14 19 7 – 56
3-point goals: Oxford 6 (Garrett 3, Leonard, McClendon 2); Gadsden City 3 (Pearson 2, Cm. Williams). Total fouls: Oxford 12, Gadsden City 14. Officials: Childs, Robinson, Dupree.
Piedmont 46, White Plains 45 (OT)
Eighth-grader Alex Odam capped a 21-point night with two free throws with 1.9 seconds left in overtime to give the Bulldogs their third straight victory to open their late-starting season. Odam is averaging 17 points over his first three games this season.
Brody Baker put White Plains in front in the final 10 seconds over overtime before Odam’s winning free throws. Quin Wilson led White Plains with 13 points, including three 3-pointers in the second half. Jacob Wheeler added 10.
Piedmont 46, White Plains 45 (OT)
PIEDMONT – Carl Myers 1 0-0 3, Kaedon Jenkins 1 0-0 3, Delo Foster 2 0-0 4, Silas Thompson 3 0-1 6, Alex Odam 7 4-4 21, T.J. Fairs 3 1-3 7, Malachi Jackson 0 0-0 0, Jakari Foster 1 0-0 2, Sean Smith 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 5-8 46.
WHITE PLAINS – Coleman Messer 0 0-0 0, Quin Wilson 4 2-2 13, Jaden Chatman 0 1-2 1, Simeon Shadrix 3 0-0 6, Jacob Wheeler 4 0-1 10, Brody Baker 2 1-2 5, Matthew Clay 3 0-0 6, Jaden Harris 0 0-0 0, Kahlil Williams 1 0-0 2, Gavin Burrage 1 0-1 2. Totals 18 4-8 45.
Piedmont 10 6 14 11 5 – 46
White Plains 6 14 9 12 4 – 45
3-point goals: Piedmont 5 (Myers, Jenkins, Odam 3); White Plains 5 (Wilson 3, Wheeler 2). Technical foul: Randall. Total fouls: Piedmont 12, White Plains 12.
Ohatchee 77, Ragland 57
OHATCHEE – Evan Keller hit 14 baskets, including four 3-pointers, to score a career-high 34 points and lead Ohatchee to victory. Keller was hot from the starting, scoring 10 points in the first quarter and 13 in the second.
In his last three games, Keller has scored 71 points with 10 3-pointers. The run started with 25 points against Coosa Christian.
“Evan is starting to settle in and take what the defense gives him,” Indians coach Bryant Ginn said. “The last couple games he had been aggressive and then his teammates find him in transition.”
Ohatchee 77, Ragland 57
RAGLAND – Travis Schall 1 0-0 2, Nate Kelley 3 0-2 6, Josh Phillips 8 0-2 16, Hunter Day 1 1-2 3, Sloan Phillips 8 1-1 18, Brody Bice 3 0-0 7, Elijah Ball 2 0-0 5. Totals 26 2-7 57.
OHATCHEE – Parker Alexander 0 0-0 0, Nathan Higgins 5 0-0 11, Trey Pesnell 1 0-0 3, Grayson Alward 4 0-0 8, Cameron Foushee 3 0-2 6, Evan Keller 14 2-2 34, Bayley Tillison 2 1-2 6, Austin Wyatt 1 0-0 2, Briley Hale 3 1-3 7. Totals 33 4-7 77.
Ragland 12 13 16 16 – 57
Ohatchee 21 27 18 11 – 77
3-point goals: Ragland 3 (S. Phillips, Bice, Ball); Ohatchee 7 (Higgins, Pesnell, Keller 4, Tillison). Total fouls: Ragland 12, Ohatchee 10.
Anniston 69, Jacksonville 36
JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville found white uniforms to wear at home to avoid the issue that caught it in its last home game, but Anniston didn’t the extra help a technical foul would have given them at the start.
The Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the field, turned the Golden Eagles over 21 times and jumped out to leads of 22-4 and 41-13 in the first half. Antonio Kite led three Anniston scorers in double figures with 20 points. William Fairley had 13 points and Kwame Milton 10. Donavon McCain led Jacksonville with 14 points and eight rebounds.
Anniston 69, Jacksonville 36
ANNISTON – Antonio Kite 7-16 5-7 20, William Fairley 4-4 4-5 13, Kwame Milton 4-12 0-0 10, Ladreka Hall 3-5 3-3 9, Theron Montgomery 3-5 0-2 6, Jordan Caldwell 2-2 0-1 4, Jordan Ferrell 1-2 0-0 3, Malcolm Harvey 1-1 0-0 2, Tahj Jones 1-2 0-0 2, Tyree Carmichael 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-51 12-18 69.
JACKSONVILLE – Donovan McCain 4-9 6-9 14, Yessmen Green 2-6 1-3 5, Kyrie Maynor 2-3 1-4 5, Hudson Harvey 0-5 4-6 4, Omarion Adams 0-0 2-4 2, Nathan Barnwell 1-1 0-0 2, Jay Davis 1-3 0-0 2, Luke Jackson 0-0 1-4 1, Jayden Barksdale 0-0 1-2 1, Carter Landers 0-0 0-0 0, DeMarien Stewart 0-1 0-2 0. Totals 10-28 16-34 36.
Anniston 22 19 23 5 – 69
Jacksonville 4 9 15 8 – 36
3-point goals: Anniston 5-19 (Kite 1-7, Fairley 1-1, Milton 2-6, Hall 0-1, Ferrell 1-2, Jones 0-1, Carmichael 0-1); Jacksonville 0-4 (Green 0-2, Davis 0-1 Stewart 0-1). Rebounds: Anniston 29 (Hall 6, Montgomery 6); Jacksonville 32 (McCain 8, Harvey 6). Fouled out: Caldwell. Total fouls: Anniston 23, Jacksonville 15.
Talladega 78, Cleburne County 51
HEFLIN – D’Corian Wilson scored 18 points and Kobe Simmons added 15 to lead Talladega to an area victory. Wilson scored 12 in the first half as the Tigers opened a 43-26 lead. Simmons had eight rebounds to go with his points, Aaron Green had 12 points and seven steals, and Brocker Simmons scored 10 points – all in the fourth quarter.
Ben Casey led Cleburne County with 15 points.
Talladega 78, Cleburne County 51
TALLADEGA – Keandre Brand 1 0-0 2, Nigel Scales 0 0-0 0, Jaquan Chatman 1 0-0 2, Aaron Green 6 0-0 12, Rontavious Barclay 4 0-2 9, D’Corian Wilson 8 2-3 18, Radarrius Montgomery 4 0-1 8, J.Q. Wilson 0 2-2 2, Kobe Simmons 5 3-3 15, Brocker Simmons 4 2-6 10. Total 33 9-17 78.
CLEBURNE COUNTY – Arcavius Brown 4 0-2 8, Noah Lindsey 4 0-1 10, Chase Smith 2 5-6 11, Hudson Miller 1 0-0 3, Barcley 2 1-3 5, Manney Rollins 0 0-0 0, Ben Casey 4 5-6 15. Totals 17 11-18 51.
Talladega 21 23 18 16 – 78
Cleburne County 16 10 16 9 – 51
3-point goals: Talladega 3 (Barclay, K. Simmons 2); Cleburne County 6 (Lindsey 2, Smith 2, Casey 2). Fouled out: Lindsey.Total fouls: Talladega 21, Cleburne County 17. Officials: Valder, Holloway, McElreeth.
Weaver 81, Wellborn 40
Robert Gaines scored 27 points and DeAndre McCain had 25 to lead the Bearcats. The two combined for 26 of Weaver’s 28 points in the second quarter and 37 points in the first half. Khavion Wesley led Wellborn with a season-high 19 points.
Weaver 81, Wellborn 40
WEAVER – Brandon Heath 2 0-3 4, Robert Gaines 13 1-1 27, Gary Wallace 3 0-0 7, Shamar Spinks 1 0-2 2, DeAndre McCain 10 1-1 25, Amardric Elston 5 4-6 14, Taber Stephens 1 0-0 2. Totals 35 6-13 81.
WELLBORN – Khavion Wesley 9 1-2 19, Justin Berry 1 0-0 2, Lewis Patterson 4 0-0 9, Tae Traylor 0 0-0 0, Robert Broom 4 0-0 10, Logan Grubbs 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 1-2 40.
Weaver 22 28 22 9 – 81
Wellborn 13 11 14 2 – 40
3-point goals: Weaver 5 (Wallace, McCain 4); Wellborn 3 (Patterson, Broom 2). Total fouls: Weaver 5, Wellborn 9. Officials: Dickson, Kelly, Barber.
Cover photo by Greg Warren
You must be logged in to post a comment Login