Photo: Coosa Christian’s J’Allen Terry (5) attempts a shot as Winterboro’s Kaden Jones defends during the Bulldogs’ 60-56 win in the Class 1A subregional playoffs on Saturday, Feb. 8 in Gadsden. (Chris McCarthy/Messenger)
Chris McCarthy/Publisher
Coosa Christian boys basketball coach Rocky Peek did not hesitate when asked to identify the main reason why Winterboro is heading to the Northeast Regional Tournament and his Conquerors are not.
“You shoot 34 percent from the free throw line, you don’t give yourself a very good opportunity to win, ” he pointed out.
Indeed, Coosa’s 8-for-23 performance at the foul line was ultimately responsible for the Conquerors’ 60-56 loss in the Class 1A subregional playoffs on Saturday, Feb. 8 in Gadsden.
Coosa’s struggle at the charity stripe was especially glaring in the fourth quarter, during which the Conquerors went from being 15 points down with five minutes remaining to just seven points behind with 2:37 on the clock.
Jhovi Cole’s basket at the 5:01 mark of the fourth put the Bulldogs up 52-37, but that turned out to be the last field goal of the game for Winterboro.
Coosa answered Cole’s score with a 13-4 run that closed the gap to six points. But the Conquerors failed to cash in at the free throw line, making only three of nine foul shot attempts over a two-minute span.
“We made some good defensive stops, but we just couldn’t finish at the line,” said Peek. “That’s all it was.”
J’Allen Terry and Samuel Reeves knocked down respective three-pointers to keep Coosa within five points, and Kylen Johnson sank all three of his attempts after being fouled on a 3-point try, but Ja’montae O’Neal’s foul shot with 4.6 seconds left made it a two-possession game and effectively wrapped up the victory for the Alpine squad.
Johnson paced Coosa with 22 points, followed by Reeves with nine, Terry with eight and D.J. Mackey with five.
Kamari Burse scored 20 points for the Bulldogs, while Cole added 16 and Kaden Jones chipped in 13.
“I just told our kids that we’ll use this experience as fuel for next year,” said Peek. “The things you learn from adversity always makes you stronger. Most of these guys are ninth and 10th graders, so we should be strong for another 20-win season and make it to JSU. If all of our boys come back to play, we will get there.”
