Priceville won the Morgan County Tournament by beating West Morgan 60-57. | Special to the Enquirer

Priceville defeats West Morgan for county title

Caleb Suggs

Hartselle Enquirer

The atmosphere was nothing short of electric for the final game of the Morgan County Tournament as the Priceville Bulldogs took on the West Morgan Rebels for the third consecutive year. The stakes were at an all time high for both teams as Priceville was looking to win their first county title since 2012 and snap a two-year losing steak to the Rebels in the finals. Meanwhile, West Morgan was looking to clinch their fourth straight county tournament, which has not been done by a team since Austin high school did it in the early eighties. Early signs looked to be in West Morgan’s favor as they had the home court advantage. However, Priceville fans went out of their way to neutralize that advantage. Fans crammed themselves into every seat and corner to witness a true instant classic.

Priceville came out firing in the first quarter and took it too the Rebels. The Bulldogs kept the Rebels on their heels with fancy passes and moves that opened up shots for guards Kyle Haynes and Parker Gwin, while the inside trio of Austin Smith, Marc McClendon and Noah Fortner controlled things from under the goal. When the first quarter ended the Bulldogs held a 15-10 lead over the defending champions.

In the second quarter, West Morgan would turn to Parker Henson to get them back in the control of the game. Henson would knock in shot after shot as he gave the Bulldogs fits as they tried to handle him. One of the highlights of the whole tournament would come a little later on when West Morgan guard Braxton Holland would throw an alley oop to Keandre Swopes, who proceeded to slam the ball in the basket as the Rebel fans erupted to their feet. However, despite the offensive surge by the Rebels, Priceville managed to continually stay ahead and took a 32-29 lead into halftime. Despite being down, West Morgan’s Parker Henson led all scorers at the half with 20 points. Priceville’s Kyle Haynes led the Bulldogs with 13 points.

In the third quarter, the Rebels continued to chip away at the Bulldog’s lead. The combined scoring of Haynes and Gwin would manage to keep the Bulldogs ahead through three quarters as Priceville held the lead 49-43.

However, in the fourth quarter it looked like everything was about to change. West Morgan started the quarter on a big run and with a little over five minutes left, they took the lead 52-49. This was the Rebel’s first lead since the beginning of the game.

Priceville had held the lead for almost the entire game but it looked like things were slipping away as West Morgan now held the lead and all the momentum. However, Austin smith would tie the game at 55. Senior Kyle Haynes would then proceed to close out the game with 5 more points to seal the deal and give Priceville the win 60-57.

After the game, head coach Darrell Haynes was very pleased with the outcome. “It has been a long time coming and it felt good to get the win after losing to them the past two years” Haynes said “and on a personal note it was a great feeling to get the win not just in my son’s senior year but for all these seniors who have worked so hard to achieve it.”

Player(s) of the game: Kyle Haynes and Parker Gwin. These two seniors played a phenomenal game and were key in this win. Gwin notched 16 points and was very important as he delivered key assists throughout the game. Haynes finished the game with 22 points and earned the MVP honors. Parker Henson led the Rebels as he finished with 29 points.