The difference maker
- Updated: December 27, 2018
Boys holiday roundup: White Plains sophomore Baker comes up big again, this time scoring 9 in the fourth quarter to lift the Wildcats in Florida, and more
By East Alabama Sports Today
FREEPORT, Fla. – White Plains sophomore Brody Baker has developed into a not-so-secret secret weapon around Calhoun County as the season has worn on, but the Wildcats turned him loose against an unsuspecting team from Kentucky Thursday and he did to it what he’s been doing to teams around here all season.
Making the first start of his varsity career, Baker scored 13 points Thursday morning – nine in the fourth quarter – and was the difference maker in White Plains holding off Breathitt County (Ky.) 54-52 in the opening round of the Hilton Sandestin Beach Blowout.
The win sends the Wildcats (10-3) to play another team from Kentucky – Highlands – Friday at 3 p.m.
“They (the Bobcats) started getting a run and I just knew (his team) needed me or someone needed to step up and make a big shot,” Baker said. “In the first half they thought I was a nobody because I wasn’t playing real well and in the fourth quarter we needed something, we needed momentum, and I just gave it to them.”
Baker was particularly big in the final four minutes of the game. He scored nine straight points for the Wildcats in the stretch taking them from three points down to a three-point lead.
The run started with back-to-back baskets against the Bobcats’ big man and then when they backed off he buried a 3.
“The fourth quarter Brody just really took over for us,” White Plains coach Chris Randall said. “Coach (Brad) Yarbrough wanted to change what we wanted to do offensively and we got Brody isolated at the top of the key and he went to work.
“He’s a lot more comfortable off the bench, but he’s still solid. He doesn’t get big-eyed; in the tightest moments he seems calm and relaxed. That’s two or three games now offensively we’ve been in the ditch and he’s taken over.”
Indeed. Baker has gone for 17 against Weaver, 16 against Anniston and 19 against Saks (17 in the second half). He scored eight of his 10 in the second half of an area win over top-10 Cherokee County and went for 25 against Lincoln in last week’s Champions Classic semifinals.
“At the beginning of the year I really wasn’t confident with anything,” Baker said. “But when I started hitting shots I started getting confidence and being more aggressive. If I can hit some shots, it opens up so much more.”
There were thrills throughout the game Thursday. Breathitt County leading scorer Kyle Fraley hit a 75-foot shot at the second-quarter horn to cut the Wildcats’ halftime lead to four. The Wildcats’ Jaden Chatman matched it – from the exact spot – at the end of the third quarter to put the Wildcats back up by seven.
The Wildcats led by one with less than 10 seconds to play. Simeon Shadrix was cut being fouled going to the basket and Randall took a time out to keep him in the game and at the line. He made the first free throw and missed the second, but Matthew Clay rebounded and kicked it back out to him and he was fouled again.
This time he made both shots to push the lead to four and the Bobcats made a layup with five seconds left for the final margin.
Free throws were just as critical to the Wildcats’ success as Baker. They started the game 1-of-4 from the line, then made 17 of their last 19.
White Plains 54, Breathitt County (Ky.) 52
WHITE PLAINS (10-3) – Coleman Messer 0 0-0 0, Quin Wilson 1 4-4 7, Jaden Chatman 1 3-4 6, Simeon Shadrix 4 3-4 13, Brody Baker 5 2-2 13, Matthew Clay 2 4-5 9, Gavin Burrage 2 2-4 6. Totals 15 18-23 54.
BREATHITT COUNTY (6-3) – Marty Fugate 0 0-0 0, Jack Fugate 2 2-2 7, Jalen Taulbee 4 4-6 13, Cam Stacy 0 0-0 0, J.T. O’Hair 1 0-0 3, Braxton O’Hara 0 0-0 0, Kyle Fraley 5 0-0 14, Brandon Slaughter 3 0-1 6, Donavan Turner 2 0-0 5, Chandler Howard 2 0-2 2, Totals 19 6-11 52.
White Plains 13 12 17 12 – 54
Breathitt Co. 14 7 14 17 – 52
3-point goals: White Plains 6 (Wilson, Chatman, Shadrix 2, Baker, Clay); Breathitt Co. 8 (J. Fugate, Taulbee, J. O’Hair, Fraley 4, Turner). Fouled out: Taulbee. Total fouls: White Plains 9, Breathitt Co. 24.
Huntsville City Classic
HUNTSVILLE – Zondrick Garrett scored 23 points and Justin Moore scored eight of his 12 in the fourth quarter, including a pair of 3-pointers, as Oxford ran its winning streak to 10 games with a 57-54 victory over Grissom.
Playing without point guard Kobe Warren, the Jackets (13-3) got off to another slow start and trailed by three at halftime. But they picked up the pace in the third quarter, grabbed the lead and stayed ahead. Garrett scored 20 of his points in the second and third quarters. He also had 10 rebounds and four blocked shots in the game.
“Z didn’t have one of his better nights, but that shows you just how good a player he can be at times,” Jackets coach Joel VanMeter said. “For all of us it was a huge adjustment not having Kobe out there. He makes everything go and takes a lot of pressure off people with what he does, and when you take him out, that just shows.
“We’re not a one-man show. With all our pieces together we’re pretty good. Take one of those away and it’s different. Tonight was one of those deals you had to just grind it out.”
Warren missed with the flu, but is expected to be available on a limited basis Friday when the Jackets play Lee-Huntsville at 1:30 p.m. with the possibility of playing the James Clemens-Columbia winner at 7:30.
In his place Thursday, Eugene Leonard had to step in and get re-acclimated to the role of a point guard against a team that wanted to slow the game down. And in his place Moore was aggressive offensively and made some big shots.
Grissom, which had its starting five healthy for the first time this season, missed a contested 3-pointer at the buzzer for the tie.
Oxford 57, Grissom 54
OXFORD (13-3) – Rylan Houck 0 0-0 0, Zondrick Garrett 9 5-9 23, Eugene Leonard 2 4-6 8, Mont McClendon 1 3-4 6, Roc Taylor 3 1-2 8, Justin Moore 5 0-0 12, Trafton Houck 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 13-21 57.
GRISSOM (6-8) – Jerwuan Thomas 0 0-0 0, Corey Tripp 2 0-0 5, Jervae Peters 9 5-8 23, Jacob Thorington 0 0-0 0, Franklin Johnson 0 0-0 0, Noah Edmonds 1 0-0 3, Charles Gossett 3 1-1 7, Tyler Joseph-Byrd 1 0-0 2, Xavier Griffith 5 1-1 13. Totals 21 7-10 54.
Oxford 6 15 19 17 – 57
Grissom 7 17 13 17 – 54
3-point goals: Oxford 4 (McClendon, Taylor, Moore 2); Grissom 5 (Griffith 2, Gossett, Edmonds, Tripp). Total fouls: Oxford 12, Grissom 16. Officials: Clift, Cobb, Henry.
Cleburne County Holiday Hoops Classic
Weaver 60, Vincent 52
WEAVER – Taylor Deck 0 0-0 0, Brandon Heath 2 0-2 4, Robert Gaines 6 1-2 14, Shamar Spinks 8 0-0 16, Gary Wallace 0 2-2 2, DeAndre McCain 3 2-2 8, Amardric Elston 5 2-3 12, Taber Stephens 0 2-2 2. Totals 24 9-13 60.
VINCENT – Ryshod Keith 11 1-5 23, K.J. Youngblood 0 0-0 0, Ladonte McGregor 0 0-0 0, Kaleb Wilson 0 2-2 2, Malik Hamilton 3 0-0 6, J.T. Youngblood 0 0-0 0, Jackson McGinnis 3 2-4 8, Chris Hurdle 4 3-3 11. Totals 21 8-14 52.
Weaver 13 17 19 11 – 60
Vincent 7 17 15 13 – 52
3-point goals: Weaver 3 (Gaines, McCain 2). Fouled out: McGinnis. Total fouls: Weaver 10, Vincent 17. Officials: Ned, Dawson, Mims.
Cherokee County 56, Saks 45
CHEROKEE COUNTY – Stephen Smith 0 2-2 2, Blake Dobbs 0 0-0 0, Nas Diamond 3 0-0 6, Ian Edwards 1 0-0 2, Slade Alexander 2 2-2 7, Ivory Moore 7 2-6 16, Mitchell Davis 0 0-0 0, Chance Latty 4 1-1 9, Luke Goss 5 4-6 14. Totals 22 11-17 56.
SAKS – Tyler Smith 1 3-6 5, Zaejuan Johnson 0 0-2 0, Daveon Dukes 5 2-2 14, Conor Martin 1 0-0 2, Zay Elston 7 1-4 16, Kyle Goedde 1 0-1 2, Jordan Cosper 1 2-2 4, Amir Johnson 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 8-15 45.
Cherokee County 11 14 19 12 – 56
Saks 7 12 15 11 – 45
3-point goals: Cherokee Co. 1 (Alexander); Saks 3 (Dukes 2, Elston). Technical fouls: Edwards. Total fouls: Cherokee Co. 18, Saks 15. Officials: Calkins, Kelley, Weeks.
Glencoe Holiday Shootout
Fort Payne 83, Faith Christian 43
FORT PAYNE – Luke Wells 0 0-0 0, Jake Hendricks 3 0-2 8, Kevin Hightower 5 0-0 11, Will Cathy 3 0-0 6, Lane White 6 1-2 14, Jordan Corbin 1 1-2 3, Ty Brooks 7 2-3 18, Zach Ridgeway 1 0-4 2, Keyshawn Hightower 6 4-4 17, Micah Simpson 2 0-0 4. Totals 34 8-17 83.
FAITH CHRISTIAN – C.J. Gomez 4 2-4 10, Seth Cravens 2 0-1 4, Michael McGraw 4 2-5 10, Ben Conley 4 0-0 12, Charles Gibbins 0 0-0 0, Jacque Prater 1 0-0 3, Jacob Cleckler 1 1-2 3, Dalton Rogers 0 0-0 0, Josiah Absten 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 5-12 43.
Fort Payne 19 20 24 20 – 83
Faith Christian 6 20 10 7 – 43
3-point goals: Fort Payne 7 (Hendricks 2, Kv. Hightower, White, Brooks 2, Ky. Hightower); Faith Christian 6 (McGraw, Conley 4, Prater). Fouled out: Cathy. Total fouls: Fort Payne 19, Faith Christian 14. Officials: Guyton, Warren, Cupcheck.
Jacksonville 71, Ohatchee 57
JACKSONVILLE – Donavon McCain 7-12 2-2 16, Kyrie Maynor 4-8 7-7 16, DeMarien Stewart 5-7 0-0 13, Yessmen Green 4-6 3-3 12, Jay Davis 4-6 0-0 8, Omarion Adams 2-8 0-0 4, Nathan Barnwell 1-4 0-2 2, Hudson Harvey 0-1 0-2 0, Jayden Barksdale 0-0 0-0 0, Luke Jackson 0-0 0-0 0, Carter Landers 0-0 0-0 0, Jaylon Prater 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-52 12-16 71.
OHATCHEE – Evan Keller 6-18 4-4 20, Bayley Tillison 7-9 2-3 19, Briley Hale 3-8 3-4 10, Michael Alward 2-8 0-2 4, Nathan Higgins 2-5 0-0 4, Cameron Foushee 0-1 0-0 0, Trey Pesnell 0-1 0-0 0, Austin Wyatt 0-1 0-0 0, Parker Alexander 0-0 0-0 0, Todd Dover 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-51 9-13 57.
Jacksonville 13 17 16 25 – 71
Ohatchee 15 9 13 20 – 57
3-point goals: Jacksonville 5-7 (Maynor 1-1, Stewart 3-4, Green 1-1, Davis 0-1); Ohatchee 8-20 (Keller 4-13, Tillison 3-4, Hale 1-1, Higgins 0-2). Rebounds: Jacksonville 35 (McCain 12, Adams 7); Ohatchee 22 (Alward 6, Hale 5). Total fouls: Jacksonville 10, Ohatchee 14. Officials: Evans, Oden, Chiles.
Piedmont 65, Holly Pond 53
PIEDMONT – Carl Myers 4 6-10 14, Kaedon Jenkins 3 1-2 7, Delo Foster 4 0-3 8, Silas Thompson 2 1-1 5, Alex Odam 7 3-5 21, T.J. Fairs 2 0-2 5, Malachi Jackson 0 0-0 0, Jakari Foster 0 0-0 0, Sean Smith 2 1-2 5. Totals 24 12-25 65.
HOLLY POND – Ben Jones 3 0-0 8, Isaac Ludwig 1 1-2 4, Parker Sellers 0 0-0 0, Devyn Tankersley 2 2-2 7, Tyler Boatwright 3 2-4 8, Kyler Chaney 4 0-0 9, Garrett Rowell 3 0-0 8, Levi Boatwright 1 0-0 3, Jordan Allbright 2 0-0 6. Totals 19 5-8 53.
Piedmont 9 23 15 18 – 65
Holly Pond 16 19 15 3 – 53
3-point goals: Piedmont 5 (Odam 4, Fairs); Holly Pond 10 (Jones 2, Ludwig, Tankersley, Chaney, Rowell 2, L. Boatwright, Allbright 2). Total fouls: Piedmont 11, Holly Pond 22. Notes: The Bulldogs trailed 30-15 in the second quarter. They held the Broncos to only Jones’ 3-pointer in the fourth quarter and hit 7-of-10 free throws. Odam had six assists to go with his 21 points. Foster grabbed nine rebounds.
Alexandria 64, Cedar Bluff 22
CEDAR BLUFF – Anbre Leek 0 0-0 0, Brian Stitts 1 0-0 2, Travon Clifton 1 0-0 3, Samuel Cosby 2 0-0 4, Lucas Hampton 0 0-0 0, Stephen Webb 1 2-4 4, Jacob Gordon 1 0-2 2, Corey Teague 3 1-3 7. Totals 9 3-9 22.
ALEXANDRIA – Seth Slaton 1 0-0 3, Adam Young 0 1-2 1, Dustin Warren 0 1-2 1, Collin Taylor 4 1-1 12, Julian Wright 4 0-0 8, Joe Tucker 0 0-0 0, Landon Comer 7 0-0 17, Romeo Dye 0 2-2 2, Jared Ponder 1 0-0 2, Khahlil Francis 1 1-1 3, Jalen Borders 2 0-0 4, Landan Williams 6 1-1 13. Totals 26 7-9 64.
Cedar Bluff 6 5 4 7 – 22
Alexandria 21 17 18 8 – 64
3-point goals: Cedar Bluff (Clifton); Alexandria 7 (Slaton, Taylor 3, Comer 3). Fouled out: Leek. Total fouls: Cedar Bluff 13, Alexandria 13.
Hillburn-Patterson Invitational
Donoho 70, Haralson County (Ga.) 45
DONOHO – Seth Ford 8 1-1 22, Amari Smedley 3 4-6 11, Rod Elston 3 1-6 7, Reid Williamon 1 5-8 7, Jacob LeCroy 4 12-17 21, Dekerri Garrett 1 0-0 2, Chandler Armstrong 0 0-1 0. Totals 20 23-39 70.
HARALSON COUNTY – Bryson King 1 0-0 2, Will McAdams 1 0-0 2, DeAngelo McFarling 0 0-0 0, Jackson Dodson 1 1-1 3, Nakota Fermine 1 0-2 3, Lane King 2 1-2 7, Cayden Robinson 5 0-0 12, Jonathon Housen 5 2-2 13, Marc Harris 1 1-2 3, Bradley McCruskey 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 5-7 45.
Donoho 20 12 17 21 – 70
Haralson Co. 7 19 10 9 – 45
3-point goals: Donoho 7 (Ford 5, Smedley, LeCroy); Haralson Co. 6 (N. Fermine, L. King 2, Robinson 2, Housen). Total fouls: Donoho 11, Haralson Co. 25. Notes: Maybe they should start calling the Falcons the Magnificent Seven. Their seven-man roster took down the host team handily. Ford’s 22 came with five 3-pointers and LeCroy’s 21 came with 12-of-17 from the free throw line.
Talladega Round-Robin
Talladega 84, Munford 45
MUNFORD – Anthony Stevens 2 0-0 5, Grady Russell 2 0-0 4, Ja’isiam Tuck 2 2-2 7, Jerry Flint 2 0-0 4, Andrew Williams 3 0-0 6, Cyrus Powell 3 0-0 6, Sandlin 3 0-0 7, Dwight Moore 1 0-0 2, JaQuan Anderson 0 0-0 0, Malijah Threatt 2 0-0 4. Totals 20 2-2 45.
TALLADEGA – Keandre Brand 0 0-0 0, Nigel Scales 1 0-0 3, Chaztin Tanner 2 0-0 4, Jaquon Chatman 3 0-2 7, Aaron Green 5 0-0 12, Rontavious Barclay 4 0-1 8, D’Corian Wilson 4 0-1 8, Roderrius Montgomery 3 0-2 6, J.Q. Wilson 6 2-3 14, Kobe Simmons 8 2-4 19, Brocker Simmons 1 1-2 3. Totals 37 5-15 84.
Munford 17 12 9 7 – 45
Talladega 25 20 30 9 – 84
3-point goals: Munford 3 (Stevens, Tuck, Sandlin); Talladega 5 (Scales, Chatman, Green 2, K. Simmons). Total fouls: Munford 10, Talladega 8. Officials: Askew, Robinson, Wright. Notes: The Tigers forced 11 turnovers in their 30-point third quarter. J.Q. Wilson had five steals to go with his 14 points. Saturday’s round-robin games have been moved up to 1 and 2:30 p.m.
Cover photo: White Plains’ Brody Baker (15), shown in an earlier game against Anniston, was a factor for the Wildcats again Thursday in Florida. (Photo by B.J. Franklin)
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