Red Raiders break Lady Tigers' 9-game winning streak

By Staff
Justin Schuver, Hartselle Enquirer
DECATUR – Hartselle's winning streak ended at nine Jan. 10 as the Lady Tigers fell to Decatur on the road by the score of 54-40.
The Lady Tigers fell behind 13-3 early in the game and were never able to make up for that sluggish start.
"They were just ready for us," Hartselle coach Greg Adams said. "We seemed like we were just a step behind the entire game. It wasn't necessarily that we were turning the ball over or getting out-rebounded or anything like that; we just seemed a little out of sync.
"It's hard for a team to keep up this high level of play all season, so maybe a loss after nine straight wins will serve as a wake-up call for us."
Decatur is unranked in Class 6A, but came close to giving Class 6A's No. 2 and undefeated Bob Jones a loss in their previous game. Adams said that Hartselle's own No. 2 Class 5A ranking might have been an extra motivation for Decatur.
"There's no doubt the rankings were a motivation for them," he said. "You always want to be the team to knock off a ranked opponent. Especially after they just lost a heartbreaker to a very good Bob Jones team, you knew that they didn't want to lose another one like that in their gym."
Decatur's defense held Hartselle 15 points below the Lady Tigers' scoring average for this season. Mary Virginia Reeves was the leading scorer for Hartselle (16-5) with 18 points. Shan Jones added 11.
Suzanne Stanley scored a game-high 26 points for Decatur, with 19 of those points coming in the second half where the Lady Red Raiders outscored Hartselle 32-25.
Decatur boys 64
Hartselle boys 45
The Tigers held a 2-0 lead early in their game against Decatur but it would be the only lead Hartselle (2-17) would have in the game as the Red Raiders cruised to a home victory.
Hartselle trailed 38-17 after a half and 55-30 at the end of the third quarter, and simply could not make headway against a Decatur team that was nearly unstoppable in the paint.
"Decatur's probably the most physical team that we've played yet," Hartselle coach Johnny Berry said. "They did a real good job of getting the ball inside and (Rolando) McClain's a good finisher.
"They're one of only two teams that's beaten the top-ranked 6A team (Sparkman) this year, so you knew that they were going to be tough."
Sophomore Wesley Clemmons had a productive night for Hartselle, finishing with five points, four rebounds and two assists. He tied for the team lead in both rebounds and assists.
Clemmons started the season with the junior varsity team, then saw his first action against Butler in late December at the Huntsville Times Classic.
"Wesley's going to be a good player for us for quite a while," Berry said.
Ryan Lindsay led Hartselle in scoring with 10 points. McClain had 19 for Decatur and Rico Pickett added 15 for the Red Raiders.
Danville boys 69
Vinemont boys 62
For the third straight game, the Hawks needed overtime to decide the outcome. Danville (10-8, 4-3 in Area 12 play) was six-of-seven from the free throw line in the extra period as they picked up the area win at home.
The Hawks trailed 34-27 at the start of the second half, but were able to tie the game up at 55 apiece and send the game into overtime.
"We stepped up the defense a little bit (in the second half)," Danville coach Robert Pope said. "We hit our foul shots down the stretch, and that was a big part of our comeback."
Chris Vest led Danville in scoring with 18 points. Tyree Murphy had 17 points, Stratton Garner added 15 and Roger Smith had 13. Smith also finished with 13 rebounds and Garner added 10 boards as both players had a double-double performance.
Murphy led the team with six assists.
Jay Hembree was the leading scorer for Vinemont with a game-high 22 points.
Danville girls 48
Vinemont girls 42
The Lady Hawks improved their area record to 7-1 as they defeated Vinemont at Danville Jan. 10.
The game was tied at 19 at halftime before both teams exploded on offense in the second half of play.
Lauren Simmons had 15 points for Danville (10-9, 7-1). Alaina Fitzgerald added 14 points and Kristen Sparkman had 10. Sparkman also pulled down 14 rebounds and led the team with four assists.
Brittany Speegle had 13 points for Vinemont in a losing effort.
Brewer girls 73
West Morgan girls 32
Nichole Hayes had 22 points as the Lady Patriots defeated West Morgan at home Jan. 10.
Brewer attempted 66 shots from the field, and held West Morgan to only 34 attempts from the field, with the Lady Patriots getting several easy baskets off 26 offensive rebounds in the game.
Ashley West scored 12 points for Brewer (12-8) and Andrea Crawford added nine. Meagan Hormel led the team with 10 rebounds and Michelle Tillman added nine boards.
Brewer boys 59
West Morgan boys 36
Matt Nielsen led the Patriots with 25 points as Brewer coasted to a home win Jan. 10. Brandon Franks and Tyler Shelton each scored nine points for Brewer (10-10).
Micah Randolph had 17 for the Rebels in a losing effort.
Priceville girls 70
Catholic girls 36
The Lady Bulldogs continued their solid play of late, picking up a road area win Jan. 10 against Catholic of Huntsville.
Keila Hamlin led Priceville (12-7, 6-1) in scoring with 18 points. Adrianna Delatorre had 12 and Jessi Smith added 10 for the Lady Bulldogs, who have won five area games in a row.
Kaeci Libarios had 11 points for the home team.
Priceville boys 62
Catholic boys 47
Josh Bedwell had 29 points and Alex Cannon added 23 as the Bulldogs took care of business on the road against Catholic.
Bedwell also had eight rebounds and four assists for Priceville (13-6, 6-1).
Zack Faulk had 17 points to lead Catholic.