PANAMA CITY BEACH — Bay came into Tuesday’s District 1-6A matchup with Arnold still sour about letting the teams’ first matchup at Bay High – a 47-44 Arnold victory – slip away at the end. Thanks to junior guard Zamuel Compere, the Tornadoes didn’t have to worry about any late game drama in the rematch.
Compere scored 25 points, including 12 in a decisive third quarter, to lift Bay to a 73-49 victory over Arnold. It was the first district win of the season for the Tornadoes, who improved to 5-12 overall and 1-3 in league competition. The Marlins dropped to 6-11 overall and 1-4 in district.
Bay had lost four of its previous five games coming into Tuesday, all of which came on the road. The Tornadoes’ win over the Marlins was their first away from home since a 56-53 victory over Franklin County on Jan. 2.
"We’ve actually been playing pretty hard recently. We’ve just had some tough losses on the road," Bay coach Michael Grady said. "This is a district game and a rivalry, so in that respect it was obviously important. But we’re a young team and we’re just trying to get better every day."
Jeremiah Hudson also had a big night for the Tornadoes with 23 points, including nine in the fourth quarter to help Bay put the game to bed. Jhykeith Holton also added nine points. But it was a third quarter explosion from Compere that helped the Tornadoes blow the game open.
Bay led 35-28 at halftime, but a run of eight straight points by Compere featuring a baseline jumper and two consecutive 3-pointers pushed the lead to 49-36 with 2:20 in the third. Compere built further onto the lead by jumping into the passing lane to get steal and converting at the other end with a tough finish through contact. The three-point play gave the Tornadoes a 55-36 edge with 51.6 seconds on the clock.
"I’ve never seen that guy shoot that well," Arnold coach Bobby Britton said of Compere. "He did a good job of stepping in and shooting well. He attacked the basket and went at us. Good for him and good for them. I thought coach Grady had them ready to go."
The Tornadoes led the game from start to finish, with an early 8-2 run started with a reverse layup by Hudson and capped off with a 3-pointer from Compere giving Bay an 18-10 lead. A mid-range jumper by Compere pushed the lead to double figures early in the second quarter, with Hudson then finishing a fastbreak layup off of a beautiful, behind-the-back pass from Compere to make it 27-14.
Arnold fought its way back into the game late in the first half, with a basket and two free throws by Zach Sinclair, a basket by Sexton off of an assist from Sinclair, and a bucket inside by Dominic Canfora cutting it to 33-28 with a minute left in the second quarter.
After pushing the lead back out in the third quarter, Bay put the game away for good in the fourth with a 9-2 run to start the quarter. A basket inside by Antonio Bazemore was followed by a transition two from Holton, a three from Hudson, and then a putback by Hudson to make it 64-40 with 5:02 remaining.
Bay will next play at Mosley on Friday in another district contest, while Arnold will host Choctawhatchee on Saturday.
BAY (73)
Compere 8 5-6 25, Holton 3 3-9 9, Holmes 0 3-4 3, Johnson 1 1-3 3, Hudson 8 6-6 23, Chancellor 0 0-0 0, Bass 0 0-0 0, Watson 1 0-0 3, Bazemore 3 0-0 6, Brown 0 1-2 1. Totals: 24 19-30 73.
ARNOLD (49)
Sinclair 4 4-4 12, Cetrone 0 0-0 0, Pettys 0 1-2 1, Russell 0 0-0 0, Bradley 1 4-4 6, Canfora 1 0-0 2, Reyes 1 0-0 2, Sexton 2 5-9 10, Prothro 0 2-4 2, Mathis 4 0-0 8, Hill 0 0-0 0, Deshazier 0 0-2 0, Butchikas 2 2-2 6. Totals: 15 18-27 49.
Bay 21 14 20 18 — 73
Arnold 12 16 10 11 — 49
3-point field goals: Bay 6 (Compere 4, Hudson, Watson), Arnold 1 (Sexton). Total fouls: Bay 24, Arnold 22. Fouled out: none. Technical fouls: none.
Bozeman 63, Wakulla Christian 19
SAND HILLS — Noah Gustason scored 22 points to lead the Bucks, followed by Dante Robinson with eight points, and Chandler Taylor with six. Bozeman is 9-7 overall and next plays Thursday at Altha.