Photo: Hokes Bluff’s Mazely Ball (32) drives to the basket as Sardis’ Lynlee Wrigth (4) and Emily Zavala (25) defend during the Lady Lions’ 53-33 win in the girls championship game of the Etowah County Schools Basketball Tournament on Friday, Jan. 17 in Sardis City. (Courtesy of Average Joe’s Sports Talk)
By Chris McCarthy/Publisher
After Glencoe’s zone defense neutralized Sardis’ inside game for much of the first half of the Etowah County Schools Basketball Tournament girls championship on Friday, Jan. 17, the Lady Lions adjusted accordingly at halftime.
“(Hokes Bluff) coach (Evan) Talbot had a really good game plan,” said Sardis coach Heath Cullom. “[Hokes Bluff] was really packing inside in the first half. We got some good looks from the outside that didn’t fall. At halftime we talked about making a couple of big shots to widen (Hokes Bluff) out and give us a little bit of a cushion.”
The host Lady Lions did indeed spread the floor during the third quarter, knocking down five 3-point baskets – including three straight from junior guard Jolie Taylor – that helped stretch the Sardis lead from six points at intermission to 14 entering the final eight minutes.
Sardis outscored the Lady Eagles 14 to 8 in the fourth quarter on the way to a 53-33 victory and the program’s third county championship in the past four years.
“I think that making a ‘3’ is the best thing that could happen in a game like this,” said Taylor, who was named Tournament MVP after finishing with 18 points. “It’s so much fun, and it really gets the team and the crowd into it.”
A pair of treys from Mollie Brock midway through the third period provided Sardis with its first double-digit lead of the game, while Taylor’s long-range shot with 40 seconds left made it 39-25.
The Lady Lions’ height advantage began to take its toll on Hokes Bluff in the fourth quarter, as the post presence of 6’4 Lynlee Wright and 6’1 Vada Wilmore forced the Lady Eagles to operate from the perimeter. Hokes Bluff scored only twice from the field during the final frame.
“Our biggest player is 5’9 and the next [biggest] is 5’7,” said Talbot. “When they got to the rim, they had a bigger girl waiting on them, so we were a little bit undersized. Sardis did a good job of moving the ball in the second half and started making some shots. I thought we handled their press pretty well, but they kept us out of the middle all game. Our girls battled their tails off but give credit to Sardis; they’re a good team.”
Brock and Delaney Lee both scored nine points for Sardis, while Jordan Knight added six.
Addison Simmons led Hokes Bluff with nine points, followed by Emma Doss and Pressely Wall with seven each and Mary Davenport with five.
Hokes Bluff came out of the first period leading 10-9 but failed to connect from the field in the second quarter. Lee scored nine of Sardis’ 12 points to send the Lady Lions into the break ahead 19-13.
Joining Taylor on the All-Tournament team were Lee, Brock and Jordan Knight from Sardis; Addison Simmons, Emma Doss and Pressely Wall from Hokes Bluff; Allie Kate Lincoln and Bailey Houston from Southside; Kinlee Montgomery and Sarah Ponder from Glencoe; Amauri Bowie from Gaston; and Zoey Mayo from West End.
Sardis qualified for the title game with a 67-48 win over Glencoe, while Hokes Bluff defeated Southside, 46-23, in the other semifinal. In other tournament action, Glencoe beat West End, 58-25 and Southside defeated Gaston, 52-35.