Saks shoots down Saints
- Updated: December 11, 2015
Boys roundup: Britt hits six 3s in 20-point game, Sacred Heart unfazed at being No. 1; Ohatchee, Faith, Lincoln, Talladega all win
Saks’ Jalen Britt drives to the basket in Friday’s victory. He did most of his damage from the outside with six 3-pointers.
BOYS GAMES
Faith Christian 67, Appalachian 46
Lincoln 74, Munford 37
Ohatchee 45, Ashville 39 (OT)
Pleasant Valley 54, Piedmont 48
Sacred Heart 97, Ragland 43
Saks 59, St. Clair County 38
Talladega 66, Sylacauga 61
White Plains 74, Jacksonville 51
Harvest at Trinity Christian
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
Jonathan Miller was looking at his Saks basketball team’s season stats earlier in the day and wondered when Jalen Britt was going to break out.
Britt was wondering the same thing. He was the Wildcats’ best player who couldn’t get on the court last year and the scorer Miller was building his offense around this year, but the senior might have been shooting 20 percent through the first three games of the year.
The day they had all been waiting for came Friday when Britt showed out in front of the student body, hitting six 3-pointers and leading the Wildcats to a 59-38 win over St Clair County.
Britt was 6 for 8 from behind the arc, 7 for 9 overall, for a season-high 20 points. He hit his first five 3s and they all were smooth. No iron. No backboard. All net.
“That was definitely the best he shot it all year,” Miller said. “He got some good looks, he knocked them down and he’s definitely capable of doing that on a nightly basis.
“He’s our best player, ain’t no secret. I think other guys have chances to develop to where they can score the basketball, but we’re going to be a team Jalen is going to lead us in scoring and we’re going to have a lot of other guys contribute but they’re not going to be big-time scorers.”
Britt was the only player in Friday’s game scoring in double figures. The Wildcats’ next high scorers, Demetrius Powell and Tre Hughley, had eight points apiece.
Britt scored 17 in the Wildcats’ season opener, but had 20 in the previous two games combined.
“This is the most shots I’ve ever attempted from the 3-point line,” Britt said. “I usually take the ball inside, but I had open looks so I took them.
“I’ve been wondering (when he’d break out) sometime, too. (Miller) tells me sometimes I play scared like I don’t want to score, but my team depends on me to put the ball in the basket so that’s what I did today.”
While Britt couldn’t miss, St. Clair County couldn’t buy a basket. The Saints (4-5) didn’t make a field goal until the 7:15 mark of the second quarter and by then Saks (3-1) had a 16-4 lead.
Before the Saints scored their next basket, Saks scored nine straight points — include a Britt 3 — to make it 25-7.
Sacred Heart 97, Ragland 43
The Cardinals stepped onto the floor for the first time this season as the recognized No. 1 team in Class 1A but didn’t look any different than the team that was working to get there.
Kevion Nolan gave them 34 points, five rebounds and four assists, and D.J. Heath scored 21 as they overwhelmed another in-state opponent for their fifth straight victory.
“We play the same way if we were No. 1 or not ranked at all,” Nolan said. “Just because we’re No. 1 in the state in our classification doesn’t mean anything; it’s just a number. Until we’re the No 1 team at the end of the year, it doesn’t really matter.”
Diante Wood had 14 points, four rebounds, four assists and five steals in about a half of playing time and Murdock Simmons had 11 points and five boards.
It was the second time the Cardinals (8-4) scored at least 95 in the winning streak. They are averaging 86.4 points during the winning streak, while holding their opponents to 45 a game. They’ve lost to only one in-state team this year – Gadsden City in their season opener.
“We’re just trying to do the things that are important to us,” Cardinals coach Ralph Graves said. “We have goals that we’ve set for ourselves so we’re just making sure we’re meeting those goals. Everybody on the outside expects you to win by this many points; we only expect to win.
“I think we’re playing well. We compete really hard. People think after you win a championship you don’t play hard, well, that’s a negative. They play hard. They’re going to play hard.”
Faith Christian 67, Appalachian 46
Senior David Wall hit four of five 3-point shots for a career-high 12 points as the Lions (5-3, 2-1) won their fifth in a row.
“He didn’t play last year, but I’ve been saying from the start of the season he can shoot the heck out of the ball,” Faith coach Brad Yarbrough said. “I hope he can keep that up.”
Caleb McCord led the Lions with 19 points. Jordan Griswould had 15 points and Jack Sills grabbed 12 rebounds.
The Lions’ 53-21 halftime lead allowed Yarbrough to clear the bench and rest his starters for Saturday’s 10 a.m. tip against Fyffe in the TV24 Holiday Showcase at Pete Mathews Coliseum.
Ohatchee 45, Ashville 39 (OT)
ASHVILLE — Brian Jennings scored four of his 11 points in overtime and Micah Lee made a big steal in the late going as the Indians (4-3) won to avoid going 0-3 in their area.
Ashville tied the game with about a minute to go in regulation and Ohatchee held for the last shot. Ben Glass had a shot from the corner that rattled in and out, and Austin Tucker had a one-handed putback with a second left that met the same fate.
Jennings opened the scoring in overtime, Ashville tied it and Jennings scored again. Tristan Woodall hit two free throws to extend the lead Lee made his big defensive play. Ben Glass scored the Indians’ other points in overtime.
“I think our team realized we couldn’t lose this one,” Indians assistant coach Casey Howell said. “I don’t think they cared who made the bucket. It was about getting the win.”
Lee also scored 11 for the Indians.
Talladega 66, Sylacauga 61
SYLACAUGA – Ashton Duncan hit 15 of 17 free throws and Jae-lyn Russ had a key bucket late in the game as the Tigers withstood a furious Sylacauga rally to earn their first area victory of the season.
Duncan made his first 10 in a row and then his last four in a row in the fourth quarter when the Tigers needed them most.
The Tigers carried a 16-point lead into the fourth quarter when Sylacauga went on a run and cut it to one with a minute to play. But the Tigers came up with a couple big rebounds and Russ hit his big basket to ice the game.
Duncan finished with 17 points. Jamonte Twymon had 12 points off the bench and Jay Smoot had 12 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Russ grabbed 14 rebounds.
Lincoln 74, Munford 37
MUNFORD – The Golden Bears bounced back from a tough area loss at Anniston, rediscovered their shooting touch and overwhelmed their fiercest county rivals.
The Bears (9-2) didn’t hit a 3-pointer in Thursday’s loss, but they drained nine against the Lions. They hit at least two in every quarter. Zay Caldwell, Tyler Hemphill and Malik Weed had two apiece.
Dee Whiteside had 10 of his 13 points and Hemphill all eight of his in the first quarter as Lincoln opened a 22-10 lead. They extended it at halftime by holding the Lions to just two points in the second quarter.
“We mixed up the defense tonight with different zones and man,” Lincoln coach Rush Rutledge said. “And we shot the ball well. We had good ball movement on offense.”
BOYS BOXSCORES
Saks 59, St. Clair County 38
ST. CLAIR COUNTY (4-5) – JaDarren Carter 0 0-0 0, Taylor Mickens 0 0-0 0, Colby Smith 2 0-0 4, Nyjil Cotton 0 0-0 0, Kimo Davis 2 2-2 8, Armond Brassfield 1 0-1 2, Chris Holmes 1 1-2 3, Jayce Fisher 2 2-4 7, Grayson Beatty 1 0-0 2, Justin May 0 1-2 1, Mason Anderson 1 0-0 2, Temothie Smith 2 0-1 4, Garrett Sanders 1 3-4 5, Grayson Coupland 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 9-6 38.
SAKS (3-1) – Jalen Wynn 1 0-1 2, Demetrius Powell 3 2-4 8, Quay McCord 0 0-0 0, Quin Smith 2 2-2 6, Jalen Britt 7 0-0 20, Davieuntae Booker 1 0-0 2, Phonoso Ward 2 0-0 4, Demerio Burnette 1 2-4 4, Tre Hughley 4 0-0 8, Darien Briskey 1 2-2 5, Landen Peters 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 8-13 59.
St. Clair Co. 4 8 11 15 — 38
Saks 16 9 14 20 — 59
3-point goals: St. Clair County 3 (Davis 2, Fisher); Saks 7 (Britt 6, Briskey 1). Fouled out: Burnette. Total fouls: St. Clair County 13, Saks 15. Officials: Lemon, Robinson, Warren.
Faith Christian 67, Appalachian 46
APPALACHIAN — Andrew Whittington 2 4-4 9, Peyton Dean 8 2-6 18, Jasper Hutchens 1 0-0 2, Jose Rivera 3 0-0 6, Matthew Noles 1 0-0 2, Roberto Hernandez 0 0-2 0, Jacob Pantoja 1 0-0 3, Chris Hernandez 2 0-1 4, Avery Fuller 0 2-2 2. Totals 18 8-15 46.
FAITH CHRISTIAN (5-3) — Caleb McCord 8 3-6 19, Jordan Griswould 6 2-4 15, Jake Balmer 0 0-0 0, Jameson Adams 2 2-2 6, David Wall 4 0-0 12, Grant Martin 1 0-0 2, Jack Sills 2 0-0 4, Michael Kulick 0 0-0 0, Jameson Thacker 1 0-0 3, Alex Taylor 3 0-0 6, Julien Key 0 0-0 0. Totals 27 7-12 67.
Appalachian 9 12 17 8 — 46
Faith Christian 23 20 15 9 — 67
3-point goals: Appalachian 2 (Whittington, Pantajo); Faith Christian 6 (Griswold, Wall 4, Thacker). Totals fouls: Appalachian 11, Faith Christian 13.
Lincoln 74, Munford 37
LINCOLN (9-2) — Issac Davis 1 2-2 4, C.J. Orr 1 0-0 3, Zay Caldwell 2 0-0 6, Tyler Hemphill 3 0-0 8, Malik Weed 3 0-0 8, Quin Carmichael 3 1-2 7, Dee Whiteside 6 1-2 13, L.J. Carmichael 3 0-2 6, Chris Prince 1 0-0 3, Donte Rivers 1 1-1 3, Brakiel Truss 2 0-0 5, Savion Woods 4 0-0 8. Totals 30 5-9 74.
MUNFORD — QT Elston 1 0-0 2, Nicholas Hudgens 3 0-0 9, Nicholas Parker 1 0-0 2, LeRaie Ball 4 1-1 10, Tacorrie Russell 3 0-2 6, James Jenkins 2 0-0 4, Zaqorion Lynch 1 0-2 2, Kendrick Hanley-Brown 0 2-2 4. Totals 15 3-5 37.
Lincoln 22 19 18 15 — 74
Munford 10 2 18 7 — 37
3-point goals: Lincoln 9 (Orr, Caldwell 2, Hemphill 2, Weed 2, Prince, Truss); Munford 4 (Hudgens 3, Ball). Total fouls: Lincoln 9, Munford 12.
Ohatchee 45, Ashville 39 (OT)
OHATCHEE — Ben Glass 3 0-0 7, Micah Lee 5 1-4 11, Brennan Wink 0 0-0 0, Austin Tucker 3 0-2 6, Brian Jennings 4 3-5 11, Sean Barnett 1 1-1 3, Tristan Woodall 2 2-2 7. Totals 18 7-14 45.
ASHVILLE – Hunter Huckbay 3 0-0 7, Samuel Wilson 0 2-2 2, D’Angelo Williams 2 2-2 6, Landon Cornutt 1 3-4 6, Noah Carter 1 0-0 3, Zarean Williams 4 2-2 12, Malek Williams 1 1-3 3. Totals 12 10-13 39.
Ohatchee 6 10 14 7 8 — 45
Ashville 6 14 6 11 2 — 39
3-point goals: Ohatchee 2 (Glass, Woodall); Ashville 5 ( Huckbay, Cornutt, Carter, Z Williams 2). Total fouls: Ohatchee 13, Ashville 13
Talladega 66, Sylacauga 61
TALLADEGA – Fred Dickerson 0 2-2 2, Tyrese Scales 1 0-5 3, Jay Smoot 4 4-10 12, Jarvis McKenzie 1 2-2 5, Ashton Duncan 1 15-17 17, Jamonte Twymon 6 0-0 12, Demarco Truss 1 4-6 6, Waderrius Tuck 3 1-2 7, Robert Houston 0 0-0 0, Jaelyn Russ 1 0-3 2. Totals 18 28-47 66.
SYLACAUGA – Devin Dates 0 0-0 0, Keaton Wilson 2 0-3 5, Darion Garrett 4 0-1 8, Jased Smith 1 0-2 2, Khalil Pope 3 4-7 12, Antwan Cook 6 3-4 18, Deonte Smith 0 1-2 1, Anthony Borden 0 0-0 0, Rhett Aderholt 0 0-2 0, Derrick Carter 1 1-2 3, Malik Crawford 2 8-13 12. Totals 19 17-36 61.
Talladega 19 18 13 16 — 66
Sylacauga 13 10 11 27 — 61
3-point goals: Talladega 2 (Scales, McKenzie); Sylacauga 6 (Wilson, Pope 2, Cook 3). Fouled out: Crawford, Wilson. Total fouls: Talladega 29, Sylacauga 31. Officials: Woods, Truss, Oden.
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