No defense for that

Girls roundup: Talladega’s Buckhanon proves too much for Anniston to handle; Piedmont’s Brazier beats Wellborn at buzzer; and more

By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today

No matter how much your program is anchored in defense, there’s just no defense for a player like Talladega’s Camille Buckhanon.

Anniston’s year-end version of Hell Week continued Thursday with a 65-50 loss to Class 5A No. 8 Talladega. Buckhanon’s size was just too much for the Lady Bulldogs, ranked No. 4 in 4A; she scored 33 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, blocked six shots and even dished five assists.

The 6-2 junior started sort of slow, scoring eight points in the first half. She picked it up after halftime though, scoring 13 of the Lady Tigers’ 15 points in the third quarter and 12 of their 20 in the fourth. She and Gabby Johnson scored all of Talladega’s points in the second half.

“When you’ve got a girl who’s 6-2, who’s giving you 20 rebounds a night, five or six blocked shots a night, there’s no defense for that,” Talladega coach Jannie Keith said. “She’s got all the tools in the arsenal, too. She’s got footwork, she’s got movement. She’s got it all.”

Anniston trailed by 11 at halftime, but came out in the second half with its trademark press and got as close as six with about three minutes left in the third quarter. It was 41-35 before Buckhanon and Johnson took over and Talladega went on the run that put the game away. The Lady Tigers led by 22 with four minutes to play.

Johnson finished with 24 points, six rebounds, five steals and eight assists.

“I really felt like we had a chance to beat them, but our inexperience kind of let it get away from us,” Bullock said. “Camille has a lot more experience than my big girls.”

The game was Anniston’s second of three straight against ranked opponents to end the season. The Lady Bulldogs beat 1A No. 3 Spring Garden on Monday, 42-35, and play at 5A No. 9 Sylacauga in their final regular-season game Friday.

“That’s a tough stretch, but it just gets us ready for the area next week,” Bullock said. “You want to play the best. It makes you not get lackadaisical.

“We hadn’t lost a game (since Dec. 23, winning 13 in a row), so sometimes you can get a false sense of security going into the playoffs and you have a letdown and get beat. Sometimes it’s better to get a loss beforehand. I want to win, but sometimes it’s better to get that loss right now when it really doesn’t matter.”

Piedmont 46, Wellborn 45

PIEDMONT — Breanna Brazier’s 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left broke Wellborn’s heart and gave the Lady Bulldogs some crossover confidence in the teams play in the upcoming subregional tournament.

The game was tied going into the fourth quarter thanks to a big third quarter by Wellborn and it stayed tight the rest of the game. The Lady Bulldogs were down by two looking to get the game-tying basket and force overtime. Brazier lost her man off a screen and with time running out she shot from about three steps behind the arc.

“Breanna took a look at the clock as she dribbled and realized there was not enough time to get the basket for the tie,” Piedmont coach Terrace Ridley said. “So, she got to her spot at the top of the key and hit a shot she practices every day.”

Brazier finished with a team-high 12 points. Kaitlyn Ridley had 11, nine in the first half as the Lady Bulldogs opened a 27-19 halftime lead. Wellborn’s Vanessa Carter led all scorers with 20 points.

Jacksonville 59, St. Clair County 21

JACKSONVILLE – Aniyah Robinson led three scorers in double figures with 17 points, Kyra Williams led a strong defensive game with seven steals and Tatiyana Thomas was solid in all phases to lift the Lady Golden Eagles.

Williams’ seven were the high mark among 21 steals Jacksonville collected in the game; she also scored 15 points. The Lady Golden Eagles scored 24 points off the 28 turnovers they created.

Thomas, meanwhile, scored eight points on 4-of-6 shooting and had six rebounds, four assists and five steals. Aniya Jefferson added 15 points for Jacksonville.

Coosa Christian 58, Ohatchee 46

OHATCHEE – The Lady Indians were in the game for three quarters and carried the lead into the fourth but just ran out of gas. Ashton Mills scored seven of her 14 points in the fourth quarter as Coosa went on an 18-5 run to pull away. Kourtney Shuler hit four 3-pointers for Ohatchee – three in the first quarter — and finished with 15 points.

Susan Moore 67, Pleasant Valley 60

JACKSONVILLE — The Lady Raiders hit 11 3-pointers and to coach Brad Hood’s eye “were playing the best we have all year” until coming up short in the final two minutes. They were 11-of-24 from behind the arc in the game, with Mac Parris hitting six and Atleigh Brannon hitting five.

THURSDAY’S GIRLS BOX SCORES
Talladega 65, Anniston 50
TALLADEGA (21-5) – Tiona Roberson 2 0-0 4, Gabby Johnson 9 3-4 24, Mahogany Hartley 1 0-0 2, Takerria Swain 0 0-0 0, Nakira Truss 1 0-0 2, Camille Buckhanon 12 9-13 33. Totals 25 12-17 65.

ANNISTON (19-5) – Miajah Bullock 7 2-4 16, Carlina Welch 0 1-4 1, Keandra Finley 4 2-4, Amonya Dudley 1 0-0 3, Jordyn Johnson 1 0-0 2, Monteiga Clemons 2 1-2 6, Tekyia Jackson 2 2-6 6, Toniah Foster 0 5-6 5. Totals 17 13-26 50.

Talladega 10 20 15 20 — 65
Anniston 6 13 18 13 — 50

3-point goal: Talladega 3 (Johnson 3); Anniston 3 (Clemons, Dudley, Finley). Total fouls: Talladega 14, Anniston 14. Officials

Piedmont 46, Wellborn 45
WELLBORN – Vanessa Carter 7 3-4 20, Anaya Lowe 2 0-0 4, Loni Welch 0 0-0 0, McKenzie Raines 0 0-0 0, Katessa Carter 4 0-0 9, Itiania Weatherly 1 3-9 5, Aliyah Thrasher 2 2-2 7. Totals 16 5-18 45.

PIEDMONT – Breanna Brazier 5 0-1 12, Kaitlyn Ridley 4 2-3 11, Lulu Jackson 2 4-8 8, Cassidy Jackson 0 0-0 0, Sydney Prater 3 1-1 8, Rebecca Smart 3 1-3 7. Totals 17 8-15 46.

Wellborn 10 9 16 10 — 45
Piedmont 13 14 8 11 — 46

3-point goals: Wellborn 5 (V. Carter 3, K. Carter, Thrasher); Piedmont 4 (Brazier 2, Ridley, Prater). Fouled out: K. Carter. Total fouls: Wellborn 16, Piedmont 11. Officials: Batey, Watson, Dowdell.

Jacksonville 59, St. Clair County 21
ST. CLAIR COUNTY – Gillian Perry 3-5 0-1 6, Alexus Ousley 2-7 0-2 4, Madison Horton 1-1 0-0 3, Alexis Wells 1-4 0-0 2, JesSharria Young 1-1 0-0 2, Chloe Henderson 0-1 2-2 2, Jayla Bibbs 0-0 1-2 1, Kylee Harrell 0-2 1-2 1, Sarah Weldon 0-0 0-0 0, Kensley Harrell 0-0 0-0 0, Jaycee Haynes 0-3 0-0 0, Ambria Smith 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 8-24 4-9 21.

JACKSONVILLE – Aniyah Robinson 7-11 2-2 17, Kyra Williams 5-12 5-6 15, Aniya Jefferson 6-9 1-1 13, Tatiyana Thomas 4-6 0-0 8, Essence Hutchinson 3-4 0-1 6, Maddie Hall 0-1 0-0 0, Melina Calderon 0-0 0-0 0, Destoni Edwards 0-0 0-0 0, Idea Gray 0-1 0-0 0, Tara Kitrell 0-0 0-0 0, Tavionna McRath 0-0 0-0 0, Sarah Quinn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-44 8-10 59.

St. Clair County 2 11 2 6 — 21
Jacksonville 14 24 11 10 — 59

3-point goals: St. Clair County 1-8 (Horton 1-1, Wells 0-3, Henderson 0-1, Haynes 0-3); Jacksonville 1-5 (Robinson 1-1, Williams 0-2, Thomas 0-1, Hutchinson 0-1). Rebounds: St. Clair County 18 (Ousley 4); Jacksonville 20 (Thomas 6). Total fouls: St. Clair County 7, Jacksonville 11.

Coosa Christian 58, Ohatchee 46
COOSA CHRISTIAN – Natalie Davidson 5 6-9 17, Ashton Mills 6 0-0 14, Neely Evetts 0 0-1 0, Mary Williamson 1 0-0 2, Ryleigh Waid 1 2-4 4, Mary Garrett 1 0-0 2, Payton West 2 0-3 4, Samara Brewster 6 3-4 15. Totals 22 11-21 58.

OHATCHEE – Ashley Phillips 0 0-0 0, Jazmine Adams 2 0-0 6, Tori Vice 0 0-0 0, Ally McCoy 3 0-0 7, Kourtney Shuler 5 1-2 15, Marli Hanks 0 0-0 0, Maggie Phillips 4 0-0 8, Regan Snow 0 0-0 0, Kacie Cooper 4 2-4 10, Mandi Jennings 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 3-6 46.

Coosa Christian 15 14 11 18 — 58
Ohatchee 17 13 11 5 — 46

3-point goals: Coosa 3 (Davidson, Mills 2); Ohatchee 7 (Adams 2, McCoy, Shuler 4). Total fouls: Coosa 12, Ohatchee 18. Officials: Kelley, Ratliff, Strott.

To see more B.J. Franklin’s photos from the Talladega-Anniston game, visit www.bjfranklin.smugmug.com

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