2A, Area 14 Boys: Red Bay drops close game to Sulligent in area finals

By Bart Moss / For the FCT

The Red Bay Tigers made a valiant come-from-behind effort in the 2A, Area 14 finals Friday night but weren’t able to get the win, falling 50-49. The Tigers hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to pull within one point.

“I thought we played Sulligent well,” said Red Bay coach John Torisky. “We stuck with our game plan about making them shoot jump shots to beat us. They are really big and have dominated us in the paint in the past.  There were a few breaks that didn’t go our way, but the kids just kept fighting, and we just ran out of time.”

Red Bay will have to travel to Tarrant in the subregion Tuesday night at 7 p.m. A win at Tarrant will send the Tigers to the Northwest Regionals for the first time since 1995.

“I feel like we have a great chance to win,” said Torisky. “It’s always better to play at home, but I think we can win on the road, given the way we played at Sulligent.”

Semifinals: Red Bay 57, Lamar County 48

Clay Allison sank four three-pointers in the first half to help the Red Bay Tigers advance to the finals of the 2A, Area 14 boys tournament. Red Bay led throughout the game and ended up with a 57-48 win over the Lamar County Bulldogs to advance and face the Sulligent Blue Devils in the finals.

Semifinals: Sulligent 47, Phil Campbell 39

The Phil Campbell Bobcats season came to an end Tuesday night with a 47-39 loss to the top-seeded Sulligent Blue Devils. The Bobcats slowed the pace of the game down to try to limit the Blue Devils’ explosive offense, and it worked for much of the game. However, the Bobcats’ inability to score in the second half doomed them, as their lead slowly slipped away.

Daniel Smith and Peyton Thomas led Phil Campbell with 13 points and 12 points respectively. Brody Nix added six points, Joe Hardy five points and Nate Owens three points.