DANVILLE – Good things came from the Vinemont Eagles Monday in their time at the Danville High School Team Camp.
But coach Todd Johnson knows his squad has some ways to go in order to make it two consecutive years of qualifying for the AHSAA Northwest Regional in 3A competition.
Vinemont shook off a very sluggish first half against East Lawrence, coming back to get past the Eagles 50-45.
Then the Eagles got into a shootout with Brewer, winning it 64-60 on key plays by Tyler Tucker and Lance Stanley in the final minute.
Meek was the last opponent for the Eagles on this day. A good first half continued with solid play in the final half until the closing moments as Vinemont was superior over the unit from Arley 59-43.
“We played well, but we also played a little ugly in the first half against East Lawrence and late in the second half with Meek,” Johnson replied. “We had fun getting three wins today. We are not where we need to be in November. We’ve to get stronger from start to finish.”
Stanley is the anchor to this ball club. A member of the WKUL Dandy Dozen team last season, his ability to handle the ball gives others the opportunity to be productive on the offensive end.
Stanley stood strong in the second half of the East Lawrence game with Vinemont coming from a 19-13 deficit, outscoring the Eagles 37-26 in the second half. This came against a squad that was in Hanceville last year as a 4A qualifier for the Northwest Regional.
Vinemont and Brewer slugged it out hard in the opening half. The Eagles were down 14-11 when they went on a 14-2 run and led 25-16. The Patriots closed to 29-22 at the break and rallied from a 39-26 deficit in the second half behind the accurate shooting from long distance.
Six treys in the final half enabled Brewer to regain the lead as the battle went down to the final minute.
A trey by Tyler Tucker put Vinemont up 60-58 then the Patriots scored in the paint to even the numbers. Tucker got one to fall from close range and Vinemont was ahead 62-60. Stanley sealed the win with two from the line with three seconds to go.
A little tired for two in a row, coach Johnson changed the starting lineup against Meek. The Eagles responded behind Tyler Tucker, along with Stanley, Trey Tucker, Trey Guthrie, Trey Waldrep and Zach Drake to gain a 31-22 lead at halftime.
A good second half saw the Eagles on a 24-9 spree, holding the Tigers to four field goals for over 15:00. Vinemont led 55-31 as the clock approached 4:00 to go in the contest.
The Tigers closed out on a 12-4 advantage with the Eagles not able to get some field goals to drop from right around the basket. But their effort in playing three times from 4 p.m. until 7:35 p.m. was accepted by Johnson in talking with his club after wrapping up a 3-0 tour on the floor of Danville Middle School.
