SOUTHSIDE — Points came at a premium Saturday night in Southside’s 35-26 win over Etowah County rival Hokes Bluff in girls high school basketball.
The Eagles controlled the clock and maintained the tempo the way they wanted for the majority of the game.
With 4:05 left in the third quarter, the Panthers (14-1) were down 17-12 after Amanda Noah made a layup for the Eagles (14-4).
It took until the 1:24 mark of the third, but Southside got its first points of the quarter on two free throws by Adrianna Jones to trim its deficit to three.
Just eight seconds later, Emilee Coker got a steal and drove the ball to the goal for a layup — Southside’s first made field goal in almost a quarter — and was fouled on the play. Her free throw tied the game for the Panthers.
“Emilee has been a great defensive player and leader all year for us,” Southside coach Kim Nails said. “She’s like a spark plug for us. And that was the spark plug.”
Using their full-court press, the Panthers were able to get two quick turnovers and turned them into easy baskets by Jones and Lauren Hunt in the final 33 seconds.
Hokes Bluff went from being up five points to trailing by four in the last 1:24 of the third quarter.
“We really work on transition in practice,” Hunt said. “It’s really a big part of what we do. We are a really fast team. We felt like if we really pushed it in transition and we knew that would change the game for us.”
In the fourth quarter, each time Hokes Bluff scored to cut its deficit to one possession, the Panthers answered right back with a field goal of their own.
Hunt then hit a big 3-pointer for Southside to extend its lead to 29-21 with 4:05 remaining. With the way each defense was playing, the Panthers’ eight-point lead felt more like it was double that.
“It’s like an option team in football,” Hokes Bluff coach Jason Shields said. “You get behind, it’s a little harder to catch up.”
Hunt and Coker each led Southside wit 11 points. Jones added eight points. Logan Black paced Hokes Bluff with 14 points. Noah contributed nine points.
Panthers boys hold off Eagles
Southside grabbed the lead in the second quarter and never let it go in its 37-31 win over Hokes Bluff.
The first quarter was tied at 10 and the Panthers (7-10) used a 9-0 run after Hokes Bluff’s Braydon Hill’s layup to start the second. Landon Johnson, who totaled 13 first-half points for Hokes Bluff (14-3), made a layup and a 3-pointer to trim Hokes Bluff’s deficit to 19-17 late in the first half.
Gavin Orr’s layup with 15 seconds left in the quarter gave Southside a four-point cushion at the half. The Eagles kept it close and got within two points early in the fourth quarter but never could grab the lead the rest of the way. Southside was able to contain Johnson in the second half, as he had just two points over the final two quarters.
“It came down to us defensively,” Southside coach Chad Holderfield said. “Our guys collectively did a good job on (Johnson). Everything else came from our defense. We got enough stops and we were able to move the ball around enough to get some open looks.”
Orr and Davin Laster scored nine points each for Southside. Dawson Nunn added eight points while Tristan Riggan scored seven points. Johnson led the Eagles with 15 points. Donovan Greaves tallied nine points.
Southside travels to Pell City for an area game Tuesday. Hokes Bluff visits White Plains for an area matchup Tuesday.