The will to win
- Updated: December 17, 2022
Friday boys roundup: Faith uses big second half to pull away in Battle of the Bypass, Oxford comes to life in Georgia, includes scores and more
FRIDAY’S BOYS GAMES
ASD 66, Wadley 64
B.B. Comer 74, Fayetteville 59
Faith Christian 75, Donoho 62
Hokes Bluff 65, Glencoe 40
Jacksonville 55, White Plains 45
Jacksonville Christian 75, Ranburne 60
Ragland 66, Appalachian 64
Sylacauga 69, Talladega 48
Westbrook 59, Ohatchee 30
War Eagle Classic, Woodward Academy
Oxford 55, SW Atlanta Christian 38
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
When it comes to the Battle of the Bypass, it’s all about protecting your house.
The Faith Christian-Donoho basketball rivalry is as intense as any in the sport in the county. They play in the same area and they’re so close they could easily walk down the Eastern Bypass to the games between them.
The teams played the latest iteration Friday night and it was as intense as ever. Faith used big nights from its two main scorers and a big second half to protect its house, winning 75-62 to snap Donoho’s five-game winning streak.
“The intensity in these games are always so high,” Lions leading scorer Thomas Curlee said. “It’s always going to be a battle.
“Donoho, they showed up to beat us. In the second half we were just talking about how we have to come out and defend our own home. We have to defend our house. We knew we could pull away with it and we had to show it.”
The teams didn’t yield an inch in the first half. Neither team led by more than six points and when they did it didn’t last long. There were six ties and two lead changes in the half that ended in a 31-all tie.
The second half belonged to Curlee and Faith teammate Yoshi Arevalo. Curlee scored the Lions’ last bucket of the first half and hit a 3 right out of the gate in the third quarter. He scored Faith’s first 12 points of the quarter, outscoring Donoho’s Sam Johnson in the stretch 12-6, and finished the game with 34 points and 15 rebounds.
Then it was Arevalo’s turn. He hit three of the biggest 3s of the game in the final two minutes of the quarter for Faith’s last nine points, including a 35-foot buzzer-beater after getting knocked down near midcourt. The shot sent the Lions (9-2) into the fourth quarter with a 52-43 lead. Arevalo had 17 points, 15 in the second half.
“They were big 3s; I felt like those were 3s that turned the game around and gave us momentum,” he said. “I just heaved (the last one). I had to get my get-back. When he dropped me I had to get him back.”
“He has lots of games where he doesn’t shoot the ball well, but he always comes in clutch for us,” Lions coach Cory Hughes said. “The worst thing you can do is make this guy mad. When he slipped there next to the half-court one, I knew it wasn’t going to be good for them. He’s a competitor. He’s not going to let you beat him. They were huge.”
One of the Lions’ points of emphasis was to clamp down on Falcons leading scorer Drew Williamson. The 1,000-point senior scored 19 points, but they didn’t come easy. Faith freshman Parker Robertson drew the defensive assignment in his first career start and held Williamson scoreless for the first three minutes of the game. He didn’t hit a 3-pointer until the fourth quarter.
“We felt confident,” Hughes said. “We’ve got a good team and I told them beforehand, tonight isn’t about Donoho, tonight’s about us and we’re coming out here to be the best we can be. I feel like we did that tonight.
“We had some blunders, but blunders were overcome by just sheer will, man. That’s what I’m so proud of tonight. They just willed themselves to victory.”
DONOHO (6-2) — Jordan Cameron 5 0-0 11, Isaiah Smith 3 0-0 7, Rich Goad 1 6-11 8, Drew Williamson 7 4-5 19, Sean Keel 1 2-6 4, Cash Worley 0 0-1 0, Sam Johnson 5 3-5 15. Totals 22-53 15-28 62
FAITH CHRISTIAN (9-2) – Conner Richerzhagen 3-10 4-4 11, Tyler Bell 1-4 0-2 2, Eli Robinson 3-6 5-8 11, Yashua Arevalo 7-15 0-1 17, Thomas Curlee 16-25 0-1 34, Parker Robertson 0-0 0-0 0, Carson Limbaugh 0-0 0-0 0, William Smith 0-0-1 0. Totals 30-60 9-16 75.
Donoho 17 14 12 19 – 62
Faith 16 15 21 23 – 75
3-point goals: Donoho 3-11 (Cameron, Smith, Williamson); Faith 6-18 (Richerzhagen, Arevalo 3, Curlee 2). Rebounds: Donoho 31, Faith 30 (Curlee 15, Arevalo 6). Fouled out: Smith, Williamson, Bell, Curlee. Total fouls: Donoho 19, Faith 24. Officials: McGraw, Pratt, Wood.
OXFORD 55, SW ATLANTA CHRISTIAN 38: It took the Yellow Jackets to get accustomed to playing by Georgia rules, but once they settled in, they flourished in the War Eagle Classic at Woodward Academy.
After falling behind in the first quarter, the Jackets held the Warriors to four points in the second and won each of the last three quarters.
“One of the first couple possessions we had a shot clock violation,” said Oxford coach Joel VanMeter, generally a proponent of the shot clock. “We didn’t even look at it, none of us. We were like, aw, man, this is a little different. But right after that we made the adjustment and we were fine. The shot clock never came into the game after that.”
The Jackets got a big game from Brock Reaves. The varsity newcomer hit four 3-pointers and scored 15 points, sharing game-high honors with teammate Jayden Lewis.
“Brock has always been close to really playing well,” VanMeter said. “He’s had some 15-point nights before, but tonight I thought he was better defensively and rebounding, and he made some plays off the dribble.
“I hope he can be consistent with it; tomorrow is a new day. Our big issue has been two of those four – Brock, T.J. (Allen), Jaylen (Alexander) and Jayden (Lewis). If two are playing well, we’re losing, three play well there’s a chance (of winning). If we can get all four consistently playing well, we’re going to win games.”
The Jackets returned to Alabama after the game and have a quick turnaround. They go back to play Mt. Pisgah Saturday at 1 p.m. local time, and then they’re off until their appearance in the Huntsville City Classic after Christmas.
“Jaylen said it was like getting up and going back to school,” VanMeter said. “Let’s look at it that way.”
OXFORD (5-8) – Jaylen Alexander 3 4-6 11, Caleb Sanders 0 0-0 0, Dashaun Calloway 2 0-0 4, T.J. Allen 3 1-3 8, Chase Truitt 0 0-0 0, Brock Reaves 4 3-4 15, Jayden Lewis 5 3-5 15, Marcus Perry 0 0-0 0, Cristian Gibson 0 2-2 2, Elijah Malone 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 13-20 55.
SW ATLANTA CHRISTIAN – Jayden Campbell 1 3-6 5, Kai Ridley 3 0-1 7, Jaden Emory 6 2-5 14, Elijah Stewart 2 1-4 5, Michael Francis 0 0-0 0, Mamour Mmbow 3 1-3 7, Dorian Williams 0 0-0 0, Jackson Jenkins 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 7-20 38.
Oxford 5 14 16 20 – 55
SW Atlanta 9 4 11 14 – 38
3-point goals: Oxford 8 (Alexander, Allen, Reaves 4, Lewis 2); SW Atlanta 1 (Ridley). Fouled out: Allen. Total fouls: Oxford 22, SW Atlanta 19.
JACKSONVILLE 55, WHITE PLAINS 45: Cam Johnson hit both of his 3-pointers in the first quarter and scored eight points as Jacksonville built a lead it maintained throughout the game. Johnson led all scorers with 20 points. His brother, Cade, scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. John Broom also grabbed 11 rebounds to go with 11 points.
JACKSONVILLE – Cam Johnson 8-14 2-3 20, Caden Johnson 8-15 3-6 19, John Broom 3-12 5-8 11, Jaleik Long 2-5 0-2 5, Ethan Duke 0-2 0-0 0, Dee Prothro 0-1 0-0 0, Jaquan Ervin 0-0 0-0 0, Devin Barksdale 0-2 0-0 0, Kydric Fisher 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-52 10-19 55.
WHITE PLAINS – Josh Wheeler 3-7 0-0 7, Z.J. Rosario 3-9 0-0 7, Paul Laube 3-6 0-0 6, Collin Spivey 2-3 0-0 6, Carter Johnson 2-4 1-2 5, Coleman Ray 1-4 2-2 4, Dylan Barksdale 2-2 0-1 4, Cameron Almon 1-1 0-0 3, Luke Bussey 1-6 0-0 2, Daniel Williams 0-5 1-2 1, Silas Hines 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 18-48 4-7 45.
Jacksonville 15 11 12 17 – 55
White Plains 6 10 13 16 – 45
3-point goals: Jacksonville 3-16 (Cm. Johnson 2-5, Cd. Johnson 0-2, Broom 0-2, Long 1-4, Duke 0-1, Barksdale 0-2); White Plains 5-17 (Wheeler 1-4, Rosario 1-1, Laube 0-1, Spivey 2-3, Ray 0-2, Almon 1-1, Bussey 0-3, Williams 0-1, Hines 0-1). Rebounds: Jacksonville 40 (Cd. Johnson 11, Broom 11); White Plains 29 (Johnson 7). Fouled out: Wheeler. Total fouls: Jacksonville 13, White Plains 16. Officials: Wise, Howell, Holloway.
JACKSONVILLE CHRISTIAN 75, RANBURNE 60: JCA’s Ethan Fair had another big game for the Thunder (8-3), going for 34 points, seven rebounds and five steals. Braxton Brown had 10 points, Tyler Doggrell and Cam Moses both had eight points and five rebounds, and Jordan Garner and Cooper Bates each scored six..
Cover photo of Faith Christian’s Thomas Curlee (24) and Yoshi Arevalo (23) in action against Donoho by B.J. Franklin.
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