Lady Jackets make free throws in crunch time vs. Bremen
The Calhoun Lady Jackets had a tough time converting free throws through the first three quarters on Tuesday night, but when it mattered most and the game was on the line they knocked some down to send them to a big subregion victory.
The Lady Jackets went 3-for-4 in the final minute from the charity stripe and made a couple crucial defensive stops to down the stretch to hold on for a 56-54 home win over Bremen. Calhoun (11-9, 4-2 subregion) struggled at the line for most of the game, going 0-for-8 in the first three quarters, but were clutch at the end with Railey Greeson and Erin Davis making the three free throws to seal it.
Calhoun then had to inbound full court with 4.9 seconds left and Davis was able to connect with teammate Anna George on a long ball to dribble out the final seconds.
“Erin was big in the fourth, hitting some layups and making those big free throws,” said Calhoun coach Kayla Ralston. “And then on the inbound, for her to read it and make the pass to Anna was huge. It was not our best game by any means, but it was a win and a big one to start the final week of the regular season. We didn’t shoot it very well, but our defense made adjustments throughout the game and picked up the slack.
“We definitely want to make more free throws early in the game, but when the game was on the line tonight, we put them in. I told the girls in a timeout with about two minutes to play that the game was probably going to come down to which team hit their free throws, and our girls stepped up and put them in.”
Calhoun built a 36-31 lead at the half, but Bremen (8-12, 2-5 subregion) fought back to tie it at 38-38 in the third before the Lady Jackets took a slim 42-40 lead to the fourth. In the final quarter, Calhoun went on an 8-0 run early in the period to build a 50-42 lead. Bremen continued to fight, however and pulled within one at 51-50. Davis, who scored nine of her 11 points in the fourth, then hit a lay-up with just over a minute to play, and Greeson and Davis converted from the free throw line in the final seconds.
The 11 points for Davis served as one of two Calhoun players in double figures with George leading the charge with 20. The sophomore forward had a big night in the paint, putting in several buckets inside and pulling down crucial rebounds.
“These past couple weeks, Anna has really turned it up and improved a lot,” said Ralston. “She is playing more relaxed and has stepped up with rebounding and scoring. But I think all the girls are making strikes these past few weeks. We are still a very young team, but we’ve grown up a lot to this point in the season.”
Greeson added seven points for Calhoun, and Erin Kelly and Erin Barnes each scored five apiece.
Bremen’s Alyssa Taylor matched George’s game-high total with 20 points. Morgan Cashen had a solid night as well for the Lady Devils with 13, and Ashlyn Hodges scored 10, including a pair of 3s.
The Lady Jackets were back at home on Friday to close out the regular season by hosting rival Sonoraville. (For details on that game, see Wednesday’s Calhoun Times.)
In other recent prep basketball action:
Calhoun boys 55, Bremen 47
The Jackets grabbed the momentum in the third quarter to build a lead and then hold on from there in the fourth to earn a subregion home win on Tuesday.
Calhoun (8-12, 3-3 subregion) outscored Bremen 18-9 in the third quarter to take control in a game that was tied 17-17 at the half. Leading 35-26 going to the fourth quarter, the Jackets then did enough in the final period to keep a comfortable margin and finish off the win.
Bralin Barton led the scoring for Calhoun with 17 points, including three 3-pointers. Davis Allen added 12 points, and Porter Law and Xaxton Goodson scored seven apiece.
Calhoun hosted rival Sonoraville on Friday to close out the regular season.
Sonoraville boys 79, LFO 73 (OT)
Sonoraville overcame a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to knot things up at the end of regulation and then finish off their comeback in overtime on Monday for a region crossover win at home.
The Phoenix (20-3) trailed by as many as 16 in the second half against LFO but never felt like they were out of the game as they steadily worked themselves back into it and got some big buckets down the stretch from Wil Walraven to force overtime, including a lay-up to tie it with four seconds left in regulation. They then outscored the Warriors 14-8 in overtime to earn the win.
Walraven had a huge night with 34 points, including four 3s. Chris Rush also played a big part in the comeback with 23 points total in the game. Trent Daniel added seven.
Sonoraville was at rival Calhoun on Friday to close out the regular season. (For details on that game, see Wednesday’s Calhoun Times.)
Sonoraville girls 62, LFO 51
Sonoraville built a big lead at the half and then withstood a comeback attempt in the second half by LFO to earn a region crossover win at home on Monday.
The Lady Phoenix (16-7) had a big first two quarters to take a 32-17 lead into the locker room before LFO stormed back with a 22-9 advantage in the third to pull within 41-39 at the end of the period. But Sonoraville finished the game off strong, outscoring the Lady Warriors 21-12 in the final period.
Alexa Geary led the Sonoraville scoring with 17 points, and Grace Darnell was just behind her in the scoring column with 16. Maliyah Parks (13) and Abby Chambers (11) also reached double figures.
Sonoraville finished out the regular season on Friday at rival Calhoun. (For details on that game, see Wednesday’s Calhoun Times.)
Calhoun boys 61, Haralson County 26
Calhoun blew the game wide open with a 30-point second quarter and never looked back for a subregion win on their home floor on Wednesday night.
The Jackets (9-12, 4-3 subregion) led 8-5 after the first quarter but picked up the scoring pace big-time in the second, outscoring the Rebels 30-7 in the period to take a 38-12 lead into the locker room.
Xaxton Goodson led the way with 15 points for Calhoun, who has now won five straight games. Caleb Boone added 11, including a trio of 3s, and Davis Allen and Tononcito Martha each scored eight.
Haralson County girls 52, Calhoun 21
The Lady Jackets had a very tough night offensively as they never really got anything going in a lopsided home loss on Wednesday.
Calhoun (11-10, 4-3 subregion) fell behind 20-9 at the half, and then Haralson County put the game away with a 20-8 advantage in the third quarter.
Erin Davis and Anna George each had six points to lead the Lady Jackets in scoring.