By John Goolsby, Prep Sports Editor and Zack Steele
Hewitt-Trussville
Boys: The Huskies lost to Oxford and defeated Fairview last week to improve to 8-4.
Hewitt hosts Hillcrest tonight and Vestavia Friday night.
Oxford 59 Hewitt 56
Hewitt Boys Head Basketball Coach Jeremy Monceaux had a message for his team prior to his team’s road game Friday night at Fairview: Be ready to play when you step off the bus.
His team responded with a resounding victory over Fairview. It was a much better start than three days prior, when the Huskies sleepwalked in the early going at home against Oxford.
Hewitt dug themselves a 19-point hole thanks to a hot-shooting Oxford team in the first half.
In the second half, the Yellow Jacket shooting cooled off, much in part due to increased intensity from the Hewitt-Trussville defense. Hewitt erased the 19-point deficit, but couldn’t close the gap, losing by three points.
“For the first time all season, I felt like we did not come out playing with the passion and energy our team has to have to play well. Couple that with how well Oxford shot the ball and it made for a tough night.” said Monceaux.
“We showed some fight to cut the deficit but it is my job to make sure we are ready to go, and I was disappointed in the way we started the game and we could just never recover.”
Reid Stodgehill led the Huskies in scoring with 18 points. Jathan Fulmer and Colt Wells had 8 apiece, and Jacqson Melton, fresh off the football field, had 7 points.
Hewitt 66 Fairview 43
Hewitt hit the road Friday and bounced back with a 23-point road win at Fairview. Hewitt jumped out to a big halftime lead allowing Monceaux to empty his bench in order to develop some much needed depth that the Huskies will need for later in the season.
Stodgehill led the Huskies in scoring with 17 points. Colt Wells came up big with 13 points off the bench. Sophomore Rashad Rolley added 11 points.
“I challenged our guys to get off the bus ready to play and I think they responded well.”
“Our defensive effort was really strong. Our defensive effort was really strong. Dave Carter, Colt Wells and our second group gave us some really great minutes off the bench. We have to continue to develop our depth ” said Monceaux
“We are excited to have a couple home games after being on the road quite a bit this season. We have two top 10 programs coming into Bryant Bank Arena this week, both are really good teams that provide different challenges for us,” said Monceaux. “I hope we can have the Bryant Bank arena full of fans to help us. Both games will take really good performances from us. We are looking forward to the opportunity to get better.”
Reid Stodgehill is the Huskies leading scorer and rebounder. Lake Williams is the leader in assists.
Girls: The Lady Huskies improve to 10-3 with wins over Oxford and Fairview.
The Lady Huskies host Mortimer Jordan tonight.
Even though it’s early December, the Hewitt Lady Huskies have already cranked out ten wins after two blowout victories last week.
Coach Tonya Hunter’s 2023-24 squad has a few new faces but the same great defensive intensity. And, of course, then there is Auburn commit Jordan Hunter, who tallied another phenomenal week.
Hewitt 64 Oxford 33
Last Tuesday night Hewitt welcomed the Oxford Lady Yellow Jackets, who turned out to be no match for the 7A powerhouse Huskies.
Hewitt appeared to be a little sluggish to begin the game, but a 40-point second half allowed the Lady Huskies to stretch the lead to 30 points for the easy victory.
Jordan Hunter led all scorers with 22 points. Ashlyn Howard and Olivia Burton added 8 points each.
Hewitt Trussville assistant coach Cedric Hunter had this to say after the Oxford victory: “We have definitely been road warriors, and we were excited to play at home. We had a slow start in the first half. The intensity in the second half is how we need to start each game. Our defensive intensity allowed us to get in transition in the second half.”
Hewitt 75 Fairview 21
Last Friday night the Lady Huskies traveled to Fairview, who were overmatched from the opening tip. The lead ballooned to over 50 points at the final horn.
Jordan Hunter had another magnificent night, with 28 points, six assists, and five steals. Mia Ada added 10 points and four steals. Lauryn Holley also added 10 points and forced six steals. Jordan Howard was a force on the boards, adding 7 points to go along with her 14 rebounds.
Hunter said the coaching staff was pleased with the performance. “We did a really good job playing defense and rebounding, and I thought we were excellent on offense.”
The Lady Huskies play only once next week, and that is Friday against a perennially tough Mortimer Jordan, who has been one of the few non-area teams to give the Lady Huskies fits in recent years.
“They are gonna be tough,“ said Hunter. “They shoot it well and play solid team defense. It will be a challenge I think we are ready for.”
Clay-Chalkville
Boys: The 7-3 Cougars defeated Shades Valley and lost to Gadsden City last week. Clay-Chalkville defeated Springville last night.
The Cougars travel to Center Point Thursday night and to the Orange Beach Classic where they will face Huntsville on December 20.
“One of the main focuses this game was getting off to a faster start,” said Cougar head man Chris Richardson. “We haven’t been doing a good job of setting the tone of the game in the first quarter.”
“I thought my guys responded well Monday night.”
Devon McKinnon leads the team with 19 points per game. He is shooting 42% from behind the three-point line.
Kevin Kirk Jr. leads the team with 5 rebounds per game and 2.6 steals per game.
Girls: The Lady Cougars stand at 12-1 on the season with a blowout win over Shades Valley and 12 point win over Gadsden City last week. The Lady Cougars defeated Springville last night.
Coach Conner’s girls travel to Center Point Thursday night.
“Kind of an up and down week for us,” said head coach Kevin Conner. “We played our best game of the year against Shades Valley,” he said. “We executed well on both ends of the floor.”
“We didn’t play as well at Gadsden and got in foul trouble early which caused a couple of starters to sit most of the first half,” he said.
“We never really got in a rhythm but were able to pull out tough road win.”
Kameron Sanders 12.3 ppg, 3.3 RPG, 3.4 APG
Kamoriah Gaines 12.0 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 1.8 APG
Brooklyn Phillips 12.8 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 1.5 APG
Shades Valley
Boys: The Mounties lost at Clay-Chalkville and defeated Jackson-Olin and Dothan last week. The Mounties defeated Center Point last night and stand at 7-6 on the season.
The Mounties host Huffman Friday.
Coach Audwin Howard continues to watch his young Mointies have growing pains his team despite their record.
“We lose focus a lot of times and don’t focus on the task at hand,” he said. “We lose focus on who is shooting and not and who is doing this and who is doing that,” he said.
“Its better to get it (the mistakes) all out now before region play.”
Sophomore Jeremy Chatman leads the Mounties in scoring with 13.7 points per game.
Junior Rashad Bryant is averaging 11.3 rebounds per game and sophomore Jeremiah Williams is averaging 4.8 assists per game.
Girls: The Lady Mounties lost at Clay-Chalkville and defeated Jackson-Olin last week. The Lady Mounties defeated Center Point last night and stand at 4-9 on the season.
The Lady Mounties host Huffman Friday.
“These next few games and our Christmas tournament will give us an opportunity to continue developing our identity,” said head coach Gary Ferguson.
“We as coaches are excited on what the new year has for us.”
“Friday night will be a really good test against a tough Huffman team,” he said.
James Madison commit Angela Williams is averaging 17 points, 15 rebounds, 8 steals, 4 assists and 1 block per game for Valley.
Center Point
Boys: The Eagles remain winless at 0-10 after falling to McAdory Wenonah Thursday night and Shades Valley last night.
The Eagles host Pinson and Clay-Chalkville this week.
Mekhi Brown leads the team in scoring, rebounds and steals.
Girls: The Lady Eagles are on a two-game losing streak after loses to Wenonah and Shades Valley.
The Lady Eagles host Pinson Valley tonight.
