County basketball recap
By Bart Moss for the FCT
Varsity Boys
Tharptown 86, Hatton 56
Tharptown easily defeated the Hatton Hornets last week 86-56. The game was never in doubt as the Wildcats jumped out to a 46-28 halftime lead and cruised to the win from there.
The game also featured the shot heard around the world as Tharptown’s Max Nolen scored two of his game-high 18 points using his head. Nolen, breaking toward the basket, was set to get a backdoor pass from Bailey Motes until Matthew Brasuell tipped the pass. The pass ricocheted off Nolen’s face and went straight into the basket. The moment was caught on video, sent to a couple online sports outlets and went viral from there. The shot was picked up by ESPN, where it was the No. 8 Play-of-the-Day on Sportscenter. It was shown on NBC’s Today Show and ABC’s Good Morning America.
Nolen and Motes led the Wildcats with 18 points and 17 points, respectively. Mikey Rosson followed with 14 points and Nathan Chaney with 11 points. Others scoring for Tharptown were Heath Hatton (9), Matthew Brasuell (7), Braden Key (4) and Blake Gray (2).
Phil Campbell 59, Sulligent 54
The Phil Campbell Bobcats locked up a share of the area title last week with a 59-54 win over the Sulligent Blue Devils. The two teams will flip a coin on Tuesday to see who will host the area tournament.
“I am really proud of these guys,” said Phil Campbell coach Brett Thomas. “We have steadily improved as the season has progressed. I think we are playing our best basketball at the right time. If we all stay focused on what is important and continue to be aggressive, we have a chance to do something special.”
Phil Campbell jumped out to a 15-8 first quarter lead over Sulligent. The Blue Devils fought back in the second quarter, outscoring the Bobcats 17-9 to take a 25-24 halftime lead. Phil Campbell stormed past Sulligent in the third quarter to take a 42-34 lead held off the Blue Devils to get the win.
Noah Williams, Gage Roberson and Peyton Thomas led the Bobcats with 15 points, 14 points and 12 points, respectively. Hayden Copeland added eight points for Phil Campbell, and Joe Hardy scored six points. Jacob Anthony and Grant Masterson scored two points each for the Bobcats.
Tharptown 74, Haleyville 67
Some clutch play down the stretch by senior Blake Gray help lift the Tharptown Wildcats past the Haleyville Lions in overtime last week 74-67. Gray scored 13 of his game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to help the Wildcats get the win.
Tharptown led Haleyville 15-4 at the end of the first period. Both teams started draining shots in the second quarter as Haleyville outscored Tharptown 22-20 to cut the Wildcats lead to 35-28 at halftime. Haleyville trimmed the Wildcats’ lead even further in the third quarter to 50-44. Haleyville regained the lead in the fourth quarter and led in the closing seconds of the game before Gray hit a putback at buzzer to send the game into overtime. Tharptown outscored Haleyville 16-10 in overtime to get the win.
“This was a big win for us,” said Tharptown coach Jonathan Odom. “We needed a game like this to get us going again. I thought we fought hard and did what we needed to do against a good team.”
After Gray, Max Nolen scored 16 points and Bailey Motes scored 13 points. Others scoring for the Wildcats were Nathan Chaney (8), Heath Hatton (5), Mikey Rosson (5) and Matthew Brasuell (2).
Tharptown 68, Cherokee 39
The Tharptown Wildcats moved another step closer to winning their area easily defeating Cherokee 68-39. Tharptown led the game 39-22 at halftime.
Bailey Motes and Max Nolen led Tharptown with 17 points and 15 points, respectively. Others scoring for the Wildcats were Nathan Chaney (9), Blake Gray (9), Mikey Rosson (9), Heath Hatton (5) and Braden Key (2).
Varsity Girls
Phil Campbell 42, Sulligent 38
The Phil Campbell Bobcats used a strong first and fourth quarter to defeat the Sulligent Blue Devils 42-38 in a key area matchup.
Phil Campbell outscored Sulligent 13-8 in the first quarter. The Blue Devils came back in the second quarter to cut the Bobcats’ lead to one at halftime, 16-15. Sulligent tied the game by the end of the third quarter, 28-28. Phil Campbell outscored Sulligent 14-10 in the final period to capture the win.
Elizabeth Benford and Chloe Roberson led Phil Campbell with 14 points and 12 points, respectively. Abby Davis had seven points and 15 rebounds for the Bobcats. Darby Elliot scored four points. Leah Gunderman had three points and eight rebounds. Dakota Elliot rounded out the scoring for Phil Campbell with two points.
Vina 58, Hubbertville 46
The Vina Red Devils picked up a big win last week over Hubbertville. Hubberville led 14-10 over Vina at the end of first quarter. The Lady Red Devils gained the lead in the second quarter behind 3-threes by eighth grader Kaitlyn King. King would finish with 14 as Vina led 27-19 at half. Hubbertville cut the lead to 38-32 at the end of three periods. Sophomore Abby Hester and freshman Emma Humphres scored ten each in the final period of play.
Hester finish with 19 points and 10 steals for a double-double. Humphres finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Junior Montana Howard had five points, seventh grader Gracie Raper had two points and Junior Mary Clingan chipped in one; all three had outstanding defensive performances.
Tharptown 69, Haleyville 64
The Tharptown Wildcats mounted a big come-from-behind effort to defeat the Haleyville Lions on the road 69-64. Tharptown led 15-11 at the end of the first quarter, but the Haleyville Lions exploded for a 24-12 outburst in the second quarter. The Wildcats outscored the Lions 16-9 in the third quarter to cut Haleyville’s lead to one 44-43. Tharptown outscored Haleyville 26-20 in the final period to capture the win.
Katilyn Vandiver and Jessica Wilson led Tharptown with 24 points and 20 points, respectively. Haley Malone added 11 points to the win. Others scoring for the Wildcats were Linda Bahena (6), Ameliah Dawson (3), Klaudia Harris (3), Debbie Gomez (2) and Darla Smith (2).
Red Bay 51, Hatton 35
The Red Bay Tigers soundly defeated the Hatton Hornets last week 51-35. Red Bay pounced on Hatton from the start, building a ten point first quarter lead, 19-9. The Tigers extended their lead to 30-13 by halftime and to 47-22 by the end of the third quarter.
Darby Madden and Allie Kennedy led Red Bay with 20 points and 17 points, respectively. Hope Cook added six points. Carlee Humphres, Morgan Pierce and Carlie Lindley had two points each. Brooklyn Bolton and Mallori Miller had one point each.
Tharptown 62, Cherokee 55
The Tharptown Wildcats used a steady performance to pick up an area win over the Cherokee Indians 62-55 last week. Tharptown led Cherokee 17-14 at the end of the first quarter. The Indians took a one-point lead at halftime, 30-29. Tharptown tied the game at the end of the third quarter, 41-41, and outscored the Indians 21-14 in the final period of play to get the win.
Kaitlyn Vandiver led Tharptown with 25 points. Jessica Wilson and Haley Malone scored 17 points each. Linda Bahena added three points in the win.
