By Johnny Sanders, Sports Editor
Pinson Valley
Boys: The Pinson Valley boys split a couple of big games this week, going 1-1 and putting their overall record at 12-8 heading into the home stretch of the regular season. The injury bug bit the Indians and put them at only seven available players.
Despite being short-handed, Darrell Barber and his boys are not ones to make excuses. The boys fought through the adversity to get a Thursday-night win over the Parker Thundering Herd at The Reservation. Pinson won the game in dominating fashion, 53-37. As he has done all season, Clyde Walters led the way with 23 points to go with seven rebounds and five assists. Austin Coner continued his fantastic season with 13 points, six assists, six steals and four rebounds. Quay Lynch added six points, five rebounds and three assists in the win.
The next game would be a big one as the Indians traveled across town to take on the red-hot Clay Chalkville Cougars, who had won four out of their last five games leading into this cross-town rivalry. The Indians fought hard but came up short against the Cougars, losing 59-45.
Despite the loss, Clyde Walters still got his 20 points to go with six rebounds and four assists. Camron Frost added nine points and nine rebounds while Austin Coner had eight points, five assists and four rebounds.
The road doesn’t get any easier for Pinson as they head to 14-5 Mortimer Jordan Tuesday night and host Baker (14-6) on Saturday evening.
Girls: The Pinson girls had a bit of a tough week, dropping both of their games this past week. The first game was on Thursday night against Parker, a 58-40 loss. Friday night, Pinson found themselves taking on one of the best teams in the state when the took the short trip to Clay-Chalkville to take on the red-hot Cougars.
Pinson’s record now sits at 8-8, a much-improved record over this time last year. The Lady Indians will travel to Fultondale on Friday night before hosting Wenonah on Saturday afternoon.
Moody
Boys: The 411 Boys continued to struggle this week, dropping a game on Tuesday to Oak Mountain before suffering a tough loss on Friday night to Leeds. Moody now sits at 5-12 and find themselves on a seven-game losing streak.
The week opened with the Blue Devils welcoming 7A opponent Oak Mountain who proceeded to walk out of the gym with a 40-point win, 82-42.
Friday night was the Battle of the Bridge between Moody and Leeds and, despite Moody playing “better than we have been” per Coach Chad Bates, they Blue Devils came up just short, dropping a 58-50 heartbreaker to the Greenwave. Junior Sidney Walton led the Blue Devils with 17 points in the contest followed by 10 points by Jaylin Rhetta.
The road does not get any easier for the Blue Devils as they travel to red-hot Springville on Tuesday. They take on Saint Clair County at home Friday and then Westbrook Christian comes to town on Saturday.
Girls: The Lady Blue Devils went 2-1 on the week, beating Oak Mountain and Leeds but suffering their second loss of the season on Wednesday at Oxford where the Yellow Jackets took it to Moody 83-50.
The week started at home against Oak Mountain where the Lady Blue Devils won 61-42. Tori Pyles and Jayla Whitsey each had 14 points to lead Moody while Tarryn Woodall and Kendall Stephens added nine each.
Against Oxford, the Blue Devils ran into a buzzsaw as they dropped the 33-point loss to the Yellow Jackets.
Next up for the 411 Girls would be Leeds in the big rivalry game. Moody would take an early lead and never look back in this one, winning the Battle of the Bridge 65-20. Familiar names led the Lady Blue Devils as Serenity Rutledge had 16, Jayla Whitsey had 14 and Tori Pyles had 11 to lead Moody.
Now at 16-2, the Lady Blue Devils have established themselves as one of the premiere teams in 5A basketball. They will take on Springville in a revenge game on Tuesday night. Coach House’s Tigers are one of only two teams to beat Moody this year. Saint Clair County (Friday) and Westbrook Christian (Saturday) close out the week for Moody.
Leeds
Boys: The Greenwave had a pretty good week as they won the only game they played in, a 58-50 win over their rivals from across the bridge, the Moody Blue Devils.
Leeds played well on Friday night, picking up the region win and improving to 9-9 overall and 2-1 in region play.
Chris Burge led the way with 15 points in the game to go with Tabari Davis’s 13 in the win.
Jeremiah Millington was optimistic about his team’s composure during the game. “We got down a bit early and they closed in on us late in the game. We never panicked, we were resilient and we did a good job. It was a good game overall for both teams and it was a really good high school basketball game and a great atmosphere. I was proud of our kids.”
Millington’s Greenwave takes on Saint Clair County and Springville this coming week.
Girls: The Lady Greenies have been bitten by the injury bug of late, leading to three of their starting five being eight graders. Despite this fact, Leeds has fought hard in every game they have been in, but they continue to come up short. But, they are building for the future. “These girls are playing hard. They carry themselves with class and they do things the right way. It will all pay off one day.”
On Friday night, the Lady Greenies took on rivals Moody. The final score was 65-20. The leading scorer for Leeds in the game was Gianna Davis with 10 points.
The Greenwave take look to get back on track Tuesday night on the road against region foe Saint Clair County before hosting Springville on Friday night.
Springville
Boys: When you speak of the hottest teams in 5A basketball, you would be remiss if you did not at least mention Springville. Brandon Easterwood has his boys peaking at the right time. Yes, the dropped one this week to Geraldine, but they have won seven of their last eight games and most by double digits.
This week started a bit tough for the Tigers with a 69-53 loss to Geraldine. Springville was competitive in the game, even outscoring the Bulldogs in the third and fourth quarters. The second quarter was the difference. The Bulldogs outscored Springville 25-4 in the second, putting the Tigers in a hole that, despite winning the second half 34-27, proved to be too much to overcome.
The second game of the week was at Saint Clair County in an area game. Springville would handle the Saints easily, winning 78-47.
Springville improved to 14-7, 4-0 in the area. The Tigers look to keep things going this week as Moody visits on Tuesday night and the Tigers travel to Leeds on Friday night, both big rivalries and area contests.
Girls: The Lady Tigers are about as hot as the boys are right now, winning seven of their last 10 games with losses only to Gadsden City (6A), Mountain Brook (6A) and a very good Cherokee County (15-3 in 4A) team.
The Lady Tigers started the week Tuesday night at Geraldine, winning that one in dominating fashion, 48-25. Next up was a trip to Saint Clair County and the Lady Tigers once again dominated their opponent, this time it was 65-10. The week ended on Friday with a loss at Gadsden City in a revenge game for the Titans.
Springville is now 11-9, 3-0 in the area. Speaking of revenge games, Springville is one of only two teams to beat Moody and they get a chance to solidify themselves as one of the best teams in 5A by taking on the 16-2 Blue Devils on Tuesday night before heading to Leeds on Friday night.