Clocked out
- Updated: November 19, 2019
In a highly anticipated matchup of marquee county teams, Oxford torches Sacred Heart by 42
Tuesday’s boys games
Faith Christian 72, Gaylesville 19
Glencoe 52, Pleasant Valley 43
Hoover 67, Anniston 61
Jacksonville Christian 79, Gaston 31
Oxford 70, Sacred Heart 28
Talladega 72, Coosa Central 53
White Plains 72, Weaver 38
Saks at Coosa Christian
Tuesday’s girls games
Alexandria 55, Oxford 48
Glencoe 54, Pleasant Valley 24
Hoover 51, Anniston 38
Jacksonville Christian 40, Gaston 31
White Plains 45, Weaver 27
Saks at Coosa Christian
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
OXFORD – When the teams put the game together at the last minute last week the news set the county high school basketball community abuzz about an early-season mega-matchup.
It was going to be a good game for both teams, one both were expecting to get something out of. It was going to be the first time two of Calhoun County’s highest profile teams have played in a regular-season setting and the rubber match of the last two county tournament championship games.
An epic battle in front of an overflow crowd was anticipated, the kind they’d talk about the rest of the year.
Wasn’t even close.
An Oxford team with high expectations throttled a different type Sacred Heart team than the juggernaut that destroyed opponents the last six years, fast-clocking the Cardinals 70-28 Tuesday in the Oxford Sports Arena.
The Yellow Jackets (2-0) scored the first eight points of the game and opened a 28-8 lead early in the second quarter. It was 40-15 at the half. They had a big enough margin to put the Cardinals on the clock with 4:49 left in the third quarter; the 30-point running clock rule only applies in the fourth quarter.
“The work that we put in over the summer and up to this point, I don’t think it should surprise anybody,” sophomore forward Rylan Houck said. “All the unseen hours that we’ve been working – we’ve been in the gym, we’ve been grinding – it should be expected.”
It wasn’t the first time the Cardinals (3-2) had faced a running clock in the fourth quarter, but it was nonetheless surprising.
Sacred Heart coach Ralph Graves recalled it happening against Alexander (Ga.) in the opening round of last year’s Spartan Turkey Jam at Mountain Brook (78-32). Mountain Brook beat them by 43 in the second game of the 2017-18 season.
The 28 points the Cardinals posted Tuesday night are the fewest they’ve scored in a game since starting their run of six straight state Final Four appearances in 2014. They’ve only five games to in-county competition in that stretch (52 wins), three to Oxford and two to Anniston. The previous four losses were by a total of 23 points.
“We have guys on our team who have never been in the fire before and don’t really understand their role is to lead,” Graves said. “You can’t be a starter playing like a reserve. You’re either going to be a starter where there’s high expectation for you or you’re going to be a reserve and when we’ve got a flat tire we’re going to use you as a spare.
“We knew coming in they had a pretty good team, so it’s a really good experience for us coming in here. It’s no different a big margin. We watched Plainview get killed down here last year and they still win the state. It’s a teaching moment. I look out on the court sometimes and I see those eighth- and ninth-graders out there trying to make plays but they’re a step too slow, a step behind. You understand that. The expectation doesn’t change; it’s still high. We’ve just got to buckle up, pick ourselves up by the bootstraps and we’ve got to man up and prepare to get better and we’ve got to grow up.
“And this was a good environment for us to grow up because when you come down here get beat by 40 in front of your friends, your family and all that, it’s embarrassing to you. With our kids, they’ve gotta understand, you can tuck your tail, be embarrassed, you can quit and all that, but we’re going to watch you and see how you react.”
The Yellow Jackets did just about everything right in the first half. They moved the ball. They hit shots (they hit their first five 3s and were 11 of their first 17 overall). More importantly, they kept the Cardinals off the glass. And when they rebounded, they pushed it out in transition.
They scored on seven of their last eight possessions of the first quarter and nine of 11 in the 20-6 run that gave them that 28-8 lead.
“When we were in rhythm I thought we were pretty good,” Oxford coach Joel VanMeter said. “And I think when we were in rhythm was when we defensive rebounded and then pushed it out and got in transition.”
Mont McClendon led the Jackets with 19 points, giving him 32 points in the last six quarters he’s played. Houck had 15 points and six rebounds. Justin Moore had 15 points. Kobe Warren had seven points, three rebounds and three assists in the first half.
Aaron Moore led Sacred Heart with 14 points and was the Cardinals only scorer in double figures.
VanMeter didn’t take any particular satisfaction in clocking the Cardinals.
“I don’t pay attention to the score, I’m sure he’s telling them not to pay attention to the score, but mainly because it’s Nov. 19, a long way from February,” he said. “I was pleased with how we played. I thought we did a good job of not looking at the scoreboard, which is hard sometimes.
“It’s basketball. It’s one game. I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to that. I’m not telling you coachspeak because, trust me, we played a couple years ago in the county tournament and he got me pretty good, too. I appreciate playing the game, I think it was a great game for the area … Other than that, it’s one more, and now we have to get ready for the next one.”
To see a gallery of photos from the game, visit www.bjfranklin.smugmug.com
SACRED HEART (3-2) – Taishun Hall 1 1-1 4, Jarek Burroughs 1 1-2 3, Jack Miller 1 0-0 2, Allen Marshall 0 0-0 0, Deven Barksdale 1 0-0 2, Jaevan Croft 0 0-0 0, Anthony Bothwell 0 0-0 0, Aaron Moore 7 0-0 14, Cade Landers 1 0-1 3. Totals 12 2-3 28.
OXFORD (2-0) – Cordell Chatman 0 0-0 0, Zondrick Garrett 4 0-1 9, Rylan Houck 6 0-0 15, Mont McClendon 5 7-7 19, Kobe Warren 1 5-6 7, Bakari Dailey 2 0-0 4, Justin Moore 6 1-1 15, Milas Jackson 0 1-2 1, Ethan Page 0 0-1 0. Totals 24 14-18 70.
Sacred Heart 8 7 11 2 – 28
Oxford 25 15 23 7 – 70
3-point goals: Sacred Heart 2 (Hall, Landers); Oxford 8 (Garrett, Houck 3, McClendon 2, Moore 2). Total fouls: Sacred Heart 13, Oxford 12. Officials: Kelley, Howell, Burroughs.
Boys games
Talladega 72, Coosa Central 53
TALLADEGA – The reigning Class 4A state champions took down the reigning Class 2A state champions behind a pair of double-doubles by Kobe Simmons and Arron Green. Simmons had 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Green had 11 points and 11 boards. Rontavious Barclay led Talladega with 19 points and six rebounds; he had 12 in the first half as the Tigers (2-0) opened a 40-24 lead. D’Corian Wilson had 11 points and four steals.
COOSA CENTRAL – Noel Jones 8 3-5 22, Cason Robbins 1 0-0 2, Trey Butler 4 3-4 11, Quin Brooks 6 1-3 13, Corey Sandlin 2 0-0 4. Totals 21 7-12 53.
TALLADEGA (2-0) – Nigel Scales 3 0-0 7, Arron Green 3 3-4 11, Michael McGregor 2 0-0 4, Rontavious Barclay 8 3-4 19, D’Corian 5 1-1 11, Ra’Derius Montgomery 2 0-0 4, Kobe Simmons 4 4-8 12, Keontae Funderburg 2 0-0 4. Totals 29 11-17 72.
Coosa Central 10 14 14 15 – 53
Talladega 19 21 13 19 – 72
3-point goals: Coosa Central 4 (Jones 3, Butlerr); Talladega 3 (Scales, Green 2). Fouled out: Green. Total fouls: Coosa Central 12, Talladega 16. Officials: Smith, Holmes, Procruk.
White Plains 72, Weaver 38
WEAVER – Quin Wilson scored all 16 of his points in the first half and Jaden Chatman also scored 16 points as the Wildcats opened its season with a win. Coleman Messer added 10 for White Plains. Taylor Thompson led Weaver with 12.
WHITE PLAINS (1-0) – Coleman Messer 4 2-4 10, Ricco Aguirre 0 0-0 0, Quin Wilson 7 1-4 16, Jaden Chatman 6 3-3 16, Jacob Wheeler 2 0-0 6, Landon Senciboy 0 0-0 0, Brody Baker 3 1-4 7, Carson Wright 0 0-0 0, Walker O’Steen 3 1-2 7, Kahlil Williams 1 3-4 5, Garrett Wilson 2 0-0 5. Totals 28 11-21 72.
WEAVER (0-2) – Brendyn Knight 2 3-5 5, Kohl Perry 0 0-0 0, Marcello D’Ambrisia 0 3-4 3, Jackson Williams 0 0-0 0, Kyle Knight 2 2-2 8, Austin Bryant 1 0-2 2, Arrmane Burton 2 2-4 6, Taylor Thompson 5 2-4 12. Totals 12 12-21 38.
White Plains 15 22 23 12 – 72
Weaver 7 12 14 5 – 38
3-point goals: White Plains 5 (Q. Wilson, Chatman, Wheeler 2, G. Wilson); Weaver 2 (Knight 2). Total fouls: White Plains 21, Weaver 15.
Hoover 67, Anniston 61
HOOVER – Antonio Kite scored 33 points, but it wasn’t enough for the Bulldogs to overcome Hoover. D.J. Fairley and Shun Sheffield combined for 27 for the Bucs.
ANNISTON (2-1) – Mark Toyer 3 0-0 6, Antonio Kite 8 14-15 33, Kwame Milton 4 0-2 10, Jordan Ferrell 0 0-0 0, Tahj Jones 1 0-0 3, Malcomb Harve 3 0-0 6, Jakobe Collins 1 0-2 3. Totals 20 14-19 61.
HOOVER – D.J. Fairley 7 4-6 21, Shun Sheffield 6 4-7 16, Alex Price 3 0-2 7, P.J. King 0 1-2 1, Michael Scott Myers 1 0-0 3, Brodin Grady 4 2-4 10, Brandon Foster 4 1-3 9. Totals 25 12-24 67.
Anniston 14 14 14 19 – 61
Hoover 17 19 11 20 – 67
3-point goals: Anniston 7 (Kite 3, Milton 2, Jones, Collins); Hoover 5 (Fairley 3, Price, Myers), Fouled out: Toyer, Havey. Total fouls: Anniston 19, Hoover 14. Officials: Hicks, Cusenberry, Brooks.
JCA 79, Gaston 31
GASTON – Kobe Messer and Chase Vinson each scored 21 points and Vinson hauled down 15 rebounds as the Thunder extended its season-opening winning streak to three games. JCA led 31-10 after the first quarter. Messer grabbed eight rebounds and dealt four assists. Nash Messer had 11 points and seven assists. Brady Shaddix, Eli Fair and Tanner Wilson all had seven points apiece.
Faith Christian 72, Gaylesville 19
GAYLESVILLE – C.J. Gomez opened his season with a big night – 35 points, 16 rebounds – to lead the Lions. Dalton Rogers had nine and Nic Goodgame added six.
Girls games
White Plains 45, Weaver 27
WEAVER – Angel Bozarth had 11 points and 11 rebounds to give new White Plains coach Matt Ford a victory in his first game. Kaylee Johnson added nine points and Callyn Martin had eight (all in the first half).
WHITE PLAINS (1-0) – Callyn Matin 3 2-4 8, Cheyenne Cochran 0 0-0 0, Hallie Williams 0 0-0 0, Shaniya Calloway 2 0-0 5, Camden Wilson 3 0-2 6, Lily Ponder 1 0-0 2, Adriana Sotelo 1 0-0 3, Angel Bozarth 5 101 11, Kaylee Johnson 4 1-4 9, Isabella Higgins 0 1-2 1. Totals
WEAVER (1-1) – Marley Tucker 0 0-0 0, Madison Atchley 2 0-4 5, Kiese Hubbard 2 1-2 6, Tiana Lawrence 1 0-0 2, Loralei Brown 0 0-0 0, Kayleigh Hindsman 2 1-9 5, Neveah Hawkins 0 0-0 0, Haley Homesley 4 1-2 9. Totals 11 3-17 27.
White Plains 9 14 11 11 – 45
Weaver 8 6 2 11 – 27
3-point goals: White Plains 2 (Calloway, Sotelo); Weaver 2 (Atchley, Hubbard). Total fouls: White Plains 18, Weaver 12.
Alexandria 55, Oxford 48 (OT)
Kameron Simpson scored 22 points and Alexandria went 7-for-12 from the free throw in overtime to lift the Lady Cubs to victory. Simpson scored 11 of her points in a 22-point third after the Lady Cubs were held to just one Chloe Gattis free throw in the second quarter. Ashley Phillips scored 14 of her 19 in the second half and overtime.
OXFORD – Justice Woods 3 2-7 8, Lauren Ellard 2 1-2 7, LaMya McGrue 3 0-3 6, Kaleah Taylor 1 3-8 5, Emma McCullough 0 0-0 0, Lisa Montgomery 2 0-0 4, Ashley Jackson 4 1-6 9, Ariana Averette 0 0-0 0, Amirea McLeod 4 1-4 9. Totals 19 8-30 48.
ALEXANDRIA – Ashley Phillips 7 4-9 19, Sarah Pelham 0 3-6 3, Kayleigh Steen 0 1-2 1, Kameron Simpson 9 3-5 22, Jordyn Walker 0 1-2 1, TyShica Woodgett 1 0-2 2, Rylee Gattis 1 4-4 6, Chloe Gattis 0 1-2 1. Totals 18 17-32.
Oxford 13 10 14 9 2 – 48
Alexandria 11 1 22 12 9 – 55
3-point goals: Oxford 2 (Ellard 2); Alexandria 2 (Phillips, Simpson). Fouled out: Woodget, McGrue, Taylor, Montgomery. Total fouls: Oxford 29, Alexandria 24. Officials: Roberts, McCombs, Wright.
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