Anniston falls again
- Updated: December 12, 2021
Bulldogs trying to find their way without some of their best players, missed three starters in loss to Huffmaan
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
RAINSVILLE – When Torry Brown finally gets all his players back there’s no doubt Anniston is going to have a pretty good team. Maybe better than last year’s state champions, perhaps good enough to land a No. 1 seed in the county tournament.
Until they get all their players back, the Bulldogs are having to find their way with several players getting varsity minutes for the first time. Most nights they have Antonio Kite to help smooth the rough edges, but when he’s not there, the Bulldogs look ordinary.
With Kite in Tuscaloosa on an official football visit in the run-up to his expected signing with Alabama on Wednesday and two other starters still out with injuries, the Bulldogs lost for the second time in less than 24 hours Saturday, falling to Huffman 69-46 in the Domino’s Classic at the DeKalb County Schools Coliseum.
“It’s difficult playing without three starters,” guard Jamarius Billingsley agreed. “We just have to play through it, do our best.”
Their margin for error is certainly a lot smaller, but Brown is encouraged by what he’s seen from the players he does have available on the floor.
“It hasn’t been stressful, to be honest with you,” Brown said. “I told the kids yesterday I was excited to play without those guys so some other guys get a chance to step up.
“I thought (Friday night) we played really, really well, all things considered, and I think today we played well in spurts. Obviously, we were a little overmatched, but in spurts I thought we did good. I saw some kids do some things that we could take with us down the season that’s gonna help us.
“I’d like to have everybody, but at the end of the day I was excited for the opportunity to give other kids.”
The Bulldogs, who lost to area opponent Handley by two in overtime Friday night, placed only one scorer in double figures against the Vikings – Billingsley (13 points). Huffman had three: Jaquarius Sword sliced them for a game-high 17, while Peyton Wiggins and Christopher Blount each had 16.
The Bulldogs only learned of Kite’s trip to Tuscaloosa on Wednesday, so they had only two days to prepare for his absence. He’ll be back. Eventually, they’ll all be back and when they are C.J. Munford says they’ll be “doubling back.”
“(It’ll be) better than the team we had last year,” Billingsley said.
Huffman 69, Anniston 46
ANNISTON (5-3) – Jayden Lewis 0 0-2 0, Tadyn Jones 1 0-1 2, Jamarius Billingsley 5 0-0 13, Martez Reed 3 0-0 8, Troy Hall 1 0-0 2, C.J. Munford 3 0-0 7, Malik Bailey 1 0-0 2, Kam Sandlin 2 0-0 4, Talib Christian 3 2-2 8. Totals 19 2-5 46.
HUFFMAN – Jaquarius Sword 8 1-2 17, Peyton Wiggins 8 0-0 16, Christopher Blount 5 3-4 16, Antwan Canady 1 0-0 2, Jamel Williams 2 1-2 5, Brandon Tinsley 4 0-0 8, Michael Johnson 2 1-3 5, Paul Reese 0 0-0 0. Totals 30 6-11 69.
Anniston 11 8 15 12 – 46
Huffman 18 14 23 14 – 69
3-point goals: Anniston 6 (Billingsley 3, Reed 2, Munford 1); Huffman 3 (Blount 3). Total fouls: Anniston 7, Huffman 9. Officials: Dupree, Smith, Procuik.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login