PREP UPDATE: Hooper boys get revenge over Evangel; Trinity beats LAMP in key area game
Evangel’s Tylon Shine goes up for a shot against Hooper’s Slade Russell and Jeremy Griggs in Thursday’s battle, won by the Colts. (Tim Gayle)
By TIM GAYLE
HOPE HULL -- In the second quarter, Hooper Academy pounded the ball into the paint for forward Luke Moseley.
In the third quarter, the Colts turned to outside shooter Nolan Cole to finish off Evangel Christian.
The one-two punch helped the Colts rebound from an area loss earlier this week with a 61-49 win over the Lions, dealing a blow to Evangel’s area title hopes.
“This was a huge game for us in the overall playoff race,” Hooper Academy coach Darryl Free said. “We’ve only been through the area one time. We’ve got to go back through the area again. Fortunately for us, we played three of the four on the road. Now we get three of the four at home.”
Hooper, which suffered its first loss of the season on Tuesday at area rival Valiant Cross, improved to 3-1 in area play, while Evangel dropped to third place at 2-2. Only the top three teams from each area advance to the state playoffs.
“It definitely wasn’t one of our better games,” Evangel coach Kerwin Washington said. “Sometimes, we get in our own way. We try to go solo and forget about the team stuff we want to do. Every loss we’ve had has been like that.”
Evangel looked comfortable early, even as Cole was helping the Colts keep pace with 17 first-half points. But it was Moseley’s eight points in the paint in the second half that made the difference, giving the Colts a slight 30-28 advantage at halftime.
“In that first half, we didn’t get to our spots to defend that,” Washington said. “We slipped up and were late on rotation and he’s going to kill us. He’s arguably the best post in AISA. We haven’t faced anybody as good as he is.”
In the third quarter, Cole added another eight points, hitting a banked 3-pointer, then coming back with an off-balance three-point play that boosted the Colts’ advantage to 46-36 five minutes into the second half.
“Those two (Moseley and Cole) have played basketball together for many years now and they work really well together,” Free said. “We know that at any given time if a team adjusts how they’re playing us, we can rely on the other one to counter what they’re doing. And then, obviously, our point guard (Dallas Henderson) was able to penetrate and dump off to Luke and Luke’s such a presence down low. And when they collapse on him, he knows he’s got Nolan.”
Cole finished with 25 points, followed by Moseley with 18, Slade Russell with 10 and Henderson with six.
“We had Slade Russell step up tonight and give us 10 (points) and play great defense,” Free said. “I thought it was a great team win. Evangel is a heck of a team.”
Tylon Shine and Jordan Duncan both had 13 points to lead Evangel, followed by D’John Wright with eight and Mekhi Williams with seven.
Evangel (13-4) returns home to play Edgewood Academy on Friday, while Hooper (18-1) remains home to face Bessemer Academy on Friday.
Davis leads Evangel girls to win over Hooper
HOPE HULL -- The first 3-pointer bounced upward off the rim before falling back through.
There was never any doubt about the next six 3-pointers.
Evangel Academy sophomore A.K. Davis torched the Hooper Academy Colts with a trio of 3-pointers in the first quarter, added another in the second and then poured in three more in the third quarter to turn what was expected to be a closely contested Class AA Region 1 Area 2 game into a 49-26 rout at Darrell Self Gym on Thursday night.
Davis finished with 23 points in three quarters, exiting the game as the Lions owned a commanding lead with a running clock.
“The way A.K. plays in general is huge for us,” Evangel Christian coach Haley Rosa said. “She’s great defensively and I think the better she is defensively, the better she shoots the ball. She just seems to bring a big spark. Our kids love her, she’s a great teammate, so when she gets out there and hits a couple of shots, it just makes our team that much better.”
The Colts were short handed with a pair of starters missing the game due to illness, but the second and third 3-pointers from Davis quickly turned a close game into a 15-7 lead that only grew larger in the second quarter.
Evangel shook off an area loss to Fort Dale with its best basketball this week, beating Lowndes 55-34 on Tuesday, then Hooper on Thursday to take over second place in area play with a 2-1 record.
“Every day you have an area game, it’s a battle,” Rosa said. “There’s no nights off. We’ve been talking a lot about that and making sure we’re prepared mentally and physically and knowing that when we step into a gym, we’ve got to perform.”
Davis performed with three more 3-pointers in the third quarter and another just inside the arc to give the Lions a comfortable lead. Erica Burton added 11 points, followed by Symone McNeil with nine.
“We’ve been really emphasizing playing for each other and just playing team ball and they’re really buying into that right now,” Rosa said. “We’re just starting to click and play at a high level at the right time.”
Hooper, meanwhile, dropped to fourth place in area play with an 0-3 record and is in danger of missing the state playoffs. Only the top three teams in each area earn a berth in the playoffs.
Grace Seale led the Colts with 11 points, followed by Henlee Garvin with eight.
Evangel (12-5) returns home to play host to Edgewood on Friday before traveling to Fort Dale next Thursday.
Hooper (12-6) remains home to play Bessemer on Friday, then travels to Crenshaw Christian on Monday.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Trinity 58, LAMP 47
John Morris scored 21 points, including seven in a decisive third quarter that saw the Wildcats outscore the Golden Tigers 19-9 to pull away for a crucial 4A Area 5 victory in the LAMP gym on Thursday night.
The game was originally scheduled for last Friday but was postponed because of inclement weather.
With the win, Trinity improved to 3-2 in area play behind Booker T. Washington (5-0). LAMP dropped to third place at 2-3, followed by Catholic (1-2) and Tallassee (0-4).
Brady Bennett added 16 points for the Wildcats and Wilson Cherry had nine, including a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter.
Benedict Akwuba led LAMP with 20 points, scoring seven points in an evenly played first quarter before the senior forward was held without a field goal in the second aand third quarters. Elliott Farrior added nine points, while the Golden Tigers’ leading scorer, senior Ezekial Griffin, was held scoreless in the first half and finished with eight points.
Trinity (13-6) will travel to Tallassee on Friday before returning home to host LAMP on Tuesday. LAMP (10-11) will travel to Catholic on Friday and to Trinity on Tuesday.
Abbeville Christian 66, Macon East Academy 47
CECIL -- Thad McKinney led three players in double figures with 13 points as the Knights dropped a 66-47 decision to the Generals in the Macon East gym on Thursday night.
Micah Andrews added 11 points, followed by Jacob Johnson with 10 points, four rebounds and three assists.
Macon East will travel to Lanett to play Springwood School in an area game on Tuesday.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
St. James 83, Thorsby 18
THORSBY -- Lily Stanford scored a career-high 18 points to help the Trojans remain unbeaten in area play with an 83-18 win in the Thorsby gym on Thursday night.
Natalie Barton led the Trojans with 20 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals, followed by Stanford with 18 points, six rebounds and three steals.
Morgan Lilly chipped in 12 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals, followed by Jordyn McRae with nine points and nine rebounds and Kaitlin Mitchell with nine points, four rebounds and four steals. Elliette Barton scored six points, Sydney Johnston had five and KK Corley added four points and five rebounds.
St. James (22-2) improved to 4-0 in 3A Area 5 play, followed by Montgomery Academy (3-1), Alabama Christian (3-2), Thorsby (1-4) and Dallas County (0-4).
The Trojans return home to play host to Dallas County on Friday, their first game at home in more than a month.
Macon East Academy 61, Abbeville Christian 39
CECIL -- Jamya Powell and Addison Longcrier combined for 51 of the Knights’ 61 points as Macon East defeated Abbeville Christian 61-39 in the Macon East gym on Thursday night.
Powell had 28 points, 19 rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals, while Longcrier had 23 points, four steals, a rebound and a pair of assists.
Macon East travels to Lanett to play Springwood School on Tuesday.
WRESTLING
Prattville Christian splits in tri-match at St. James
Prattville Christian traveled to St. James on Thursday to compete in a tri-match with the host team and Charles Henderson, losing to St. James 37-12 before defeating Charles Henderson 60-0.
Undefeated PCA wrestlers included Jude Bray, Mason Holton, Derek Webb, Brooks Carothers and Bryson Bowman.
The middle school and junior varsity wrestlers will travel to Hoover High on Saturday to participate in the Bucs Brawl, while the varsity retiurns to action on Monday at home in the 12-team Panther Invitational. Wrestling starts at 9 a.m.