Finally on the floor

By EASportsToday.com
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Updated: December 13, 2018

Piedmont finally hits basketball floor, makes coach JoJo Odam’s debut a night to remember; JCA, Ohatchee, Talladega also score wins Thursday

THURSDAY’S BOYS GAMES
Clay Central 60, Saks 49
Cleburne County at Bowden (Ga.)
Jacksonville Christian 76, Gaston 36
Talladega 79, Lincoln 46
Ohatchee 75, Coosa Christian 59
Piedmont 86, Wellborn 18

By East Alabama Sports Today

PIEDMONT – The newest head basketball coach in Calhoun County finally got to put his team on the floor and the JoJo Odam Era at Piedmont couldn’t have started better.

The Bulldogs were the last county team to hit the court and showed no wear for waiting Thursday, crushing Wellborn 86-18 in JoJo Odam’s first game as head coach. Odam was elevated to succeed Tommy Lewis, who retired at the end of last season.

“It’s good to get the first,” Odam said. “I was nervous, but super excited to get the ball rolling.”

The Bulldogs got off to such a late basketball start because of a long run in football that ended in the state championship game last Thursday. Odom, meanwhile, didn’t sit idly waiting; he spent most of the time watching teams that were playing and taking notes.

“I guess I was just so excited about the football, it kept me going and kept my mind off the basketball,” he said. “The times I thought about basketball was when I was scouting games. All the other times I was so excited about the football kids.”

Piedmont put four scorers in double figures in their opener, led by Alex Odam’s 19. Delo Foster and T.J. Fairs had 12 points each and Carl Myers added 10. Odam also had four assists and three steals. Fairs had five assists and three steals. Myers grabbed nine rebounds, Silas Thompson and Sean Smith eight each, and Foster seven.

“I thought we were going to be rusty, but I was really pleased,” Odam said. “We got off to a fast start and I think that helped ease everybody in and settle us down early.

“We talked all week about playing together, playing hard early. We played together and that was a big thing; the guys acted like they like each other.”

Piedmont 86, Wellborn 18
WELLBORN – Khavion Wesley 3 3-7 9, Justin Berry 0 0-0 0, Lewis Patterson 1 0-0 2, Max Searcy 1 0-0 3, Tae Traylor 0 0-1 0, Rob Broom 1 2-2 4, Harley Kendall 0 0-0 0, Logan Grubbs 0 0-0 0. Totals 6 5-10 18.
PIEDMONT (1-0) – Carl Myers 3 3-6 10, Kaedon Jenkins 2 0-1 5, Delo Foster 6 0-0 12, Silas Thompson 4 1-2 9, Alex Odam 8 1-2 19, T.J. Fairs 4 2-3 12, Malachi Jackson 1 0-0 3, Jakari Foster 3 1-3 8, Sean Smith 2 4-4 8. Totals 33 12-21 86.
Wellborn 2 11 4 1 – 18
Piedmont 25 24 21 16 – 86
3-point goals: Wellborn 1 (Searcy); Piedmont 8 (Myers, Jenkins, Odam 2, Fairs 2, Jackson, J. Foster). Technical fouls: Thompson. Total fouls: Wellborn 19, Piedmont 12. Officials: Batey, Kelley, Pratt.

Ohatchee 75, Coosa Christian 59

OHATCHEE – Evan Keller hit three 3-pointers in the first quarter and scored 15 of his 25 points in the first half as the Indians roared to a 36-14 halftime lead. The Indians maintained their edge by going 18-of-21 from the free throw line in the second half. Cameron Foushee (12) and Bayley Tillison (11) also scored in double figures for the Indians. Coosa’s Evan Delp led all scorers with 27 points.

Ohatchee 75, Coosa Christian 59
COOSA CHRISTIAN – Dartavious Britton 0 1-2 1, Caleb Cates 1 2-4 5, Juston Waits 4 1-2 10, Mikell Mooneyham 1 0-0 3, Evan Delp 7 9-12 27, Kyle Jones 0 0-0 0, Noah Davidson 4 1-2 12, Caiden Lipscomb 0 1-2 1. Totals 17 15-24 59.
OHATCHEE – Parker Alexander 0 0-0 0, Nathan Higgins 1 1-4 4, Trey Pesnell 1 1-2 4, Grayson Alward 3 0-0 6, Todd Dover 0 0-0 0, Cameron Foushee 3 4-4 12, Evan Keller 8 5-6 25, Bayley Tillison 3 5-8 11, Austin Wyatt 1 4-4 6, Briley Hale 0 7-8 7. Totals 20 27-36 75.
Coosa Christian 5 9 27 18 – 59
Ohatchee 22 14 21 18 – 75
3-point goals: Coosa Christian 10 (Cates, Waits, Mooneyham, Delp 4, Davidson 3); Ohatchee 8 (Higgins, Pesnell, Foushee 2, Keller 4). Total fouls: Coosa Christian 22, Ohatchee 19. Officials: Burroughs, Barber, Stubbs.

JCA 76, Gaston 36

JACKSONVILLE – Chase Vinson continues to post big games for the Thunder (8-3), this time collecting 22 points, 15 rebounds and four steals. Nash Messer scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished five assists, while Kobe Messer had 14 points. Garrison Hunt led Gaston with 16 points.

Talladega 79, Lincoln 46

TALLADEGA – Kobe Simmons scored 19 points in the first half as the Tigers opened a 29-point halftime lead and finished with 27 points and 14 rebounds. D’Corian Wilson added 12 points, Aaron Green had nine and Chaztin Tanner had six steals and four assists. Brian Garrett led Lincoln with 25 points.

Talladega 79, Lincoln 46
LINCOLN – Brian Garrett 9 5-8 25, Cam Reynolds 0 0-1 0, Jakahri Howard 0 0-0 0, Steve White 1 1-4 3, Xavier Ragland 1 0-0 2, Kevon Moore 2 1-2 5, Jack Wood 2 0-0 4, Trevon Hines 2 0-2 4, Kyle Patterson 1 1-1 3. Totals 18 8-18 46.
TALLADEGA – Keandre Brand 0 1-2 1, Nigel Scales 0 0-0 0, Chaztin Tanner 2 0-0 4, Jaquon Chatman 3 0-0 7, Aaron Green 4 0-0 9, Rontavious Barclay 2 0-0 4, D’Corian Wilson 4 2-4 12, Radarrius Montgomery 2 2-4 6, J.Q. Wilson 1 3-5 5, Kobe Simmons 12 1-5 27, Brocker Simmons 1 2-2 4. Totals 31 11-22 79.
Lincoln 13 7 16 10 – 46
Talladega 25 24 19 11 – 79
3-point goals: Lincoln 2 (Garrett 2); Talladega 6 (Chatman, Green, D. Wilson 2, K. Simmons 2). Total fouls: Lincoln 12, Talladega 16. Officials: Stringer, Giles, Montgomery

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