Red Bay boys keep hot streak
Fresh off their domination of the Franklin County Tournament, the top-ranked Red Bay Tigers continued their impressive performances, beating Phil Campbell 63-27.
Red Bay put this game away early, running out to a 19-8 first quarter lead. Lane Shewbart scored eight of Red Bay’s first 19 points.
Six of Phil Campbell’s eight first-quarter points came off of two early three-pointers by Luke Garrison.
Red Bay had the game in hand by halftime, as the Tigers outscored the Bobcats 18-6 to extend their lead to 37-14. The Tigers led 54-20 at the end of the third quarter and cruised to the easy win.
Shewbart led Red Bay with 15 points, followed by Jalen Vinson with 10 points. Gath Weatherford knocked down thee three-pointers to score nine points. Clay Allison and Braden Ray added seven points each, Noah Brewer six points, Arden Hamilton four points, Colton Corum three points and Hunter Bays two points.
Garrison led Phil Campbell with eight points, and Ben Williams added seven points. Brett Saint and Dylan Jeane scored four points each, while Mason Swinney and Nate Owens added two points each.
Red Bay 42, Belmont (Miss.) 29
The Red Bay Tigers easily dismantled the Belmont Cardinals last week, 42-29.
Red Bay outscored Belmont 10-4 in the first quarter and 12-9 in the second quarter to lead 22-13 at halftime. The Tigers extended their lead to 34-17 in the third quarter to get the relatively easy win.
Weatherford led Red Bay with 10 points. Bays added seven points, Hamilton six points, Allison five points, Corum five points, Brewer four points, Shewbart four points, Vinson two points and Ray two points.
Deshler 64, Red Bay 60
In a game of runs, Deshler had one more than Red Bay, and the Tigers from Colbert County bested the Tigers from Franklin County 64-60. A packed and energetic crowd was on hand to watch the two Top 10 teams play – Red Bay ranked first in Class 2A and Deshler ranked eighth in Class 4A.
Red Bay wasted no time putting the pressure on Deshler, coached by Belgreen alum Brian Pounders. Red Bay jumped out to a 17-11 lead in the first quarter off a balanced scoring attack, and Allison hit a three to give Red Bay a 20-15 first quarter lead.
Weatherford hit a couple of baskets early in the second quarter to push Red Bay’s lead out to 25-17, but Deshler then went on a 15-2 run to take 32-25 lead over Red Bay with 1:31 to go in the first half. Corum and Bays closed out the half with baskets – Bays a three-pointer at the buzzer – to cut Deshler’s lead to 32-20 at halftime.
Red Bay reclaimed the lead right out of halftime on a three-pointer by Ray. Weatherford and Ray combined for 14 of the Tigers’ 17 third quarter points to help Red Bay hold on to a 47-43 lead going into the final quarter.
Deshler’s star point-guard, J.P. Robinson, took over, scoring 14 of the Tigers’ 22 fourth-quarter points to lead the come-from-behind effort. Robinson, who has been nursing a hurt ankle, ended the game with 27 points.
Weatherford ended the game with 19 points and Bays with 10 points to lead Red Bay. Ray added nine points, Corum eight points, Allison five points, Hamilton five points and Shewbart four points.
Belmont (Miss.) 58, Phil Campbell 49
The Belmont Cardinals outscored the Phil Campbell Bobcats in all four quarters on their way to a 58-49 win.
Belmont led Phil Campbell 13-11 at the end of the first quarter and extended that lead to 29-24 at halftime. The Cardinals added to their advantage in the third quarter to take a 44-37 lead before claiming the win in the final period.
Isaac Riddle led the Bobcats with 16 points, all of which came in the second half of the game. Owens followed with 11 points. Saint and Swinney added six points each, Garrison four points, Williams two points and Ridge Raper two points.