BREMEN – Eli Hamby showed poise in the final three minutes, getting eight of his game-high 17 points that helped the Cold Springs Eagles clinch the Class 2A, Area 13 regular season title Thursday night with a 56-48 victory over Winston County.
Hamby knocked down six consecutive free throws after missing a front end of a one-and-one with 4:24 remaining. He also scored on a layup that was enough for the Eagles to maintain a respectable lead, with Winston County never giving in until the game ended.
The Eagles shook off three straight one-and-one misses in the fourth, converting eight of their final nine free throws. Tension began to rise between the two squads when a technical foul was assessed against the Eagles' Hunter McClendon after he got fouled in a crowd of Winston County players near the basket with less than a minute remaining.
Cold Springs got started very well at Jesse George Gymnasium, leading 15-2 after the first with Hamby, Jesse Lee and Blake Wood setting the tone for the Eagles' offense.
They maintained a double-digit lead of 26-15 at the half. Winston County narrowed the margin to 39-29 when the game entered the final quarter.
The Eagle lead was cut to eight on a 3-pointer with 2:42 to play, making it a 45-37 score. Then Lee scored on a basket and the Eagles were back up by 10 points and able to put away the hard charging Yellow Jackets in crunch time.
Cold Springs scored seven second-half layups off great passing from Lee, Fisher Willoughby, Wood, Hamby and McClendon. That was a key for Tim Willoughby's squad to execute good passing and break down Winston County's defense with easy scoring chances.
The Eagles are 4-0 in Area 13 and 10-7 overall. Winston County dropped to 2-3 in the area and 11-5 for the season.
Lee was next in the scoring category for the Eagles with 14, McClendon scored 10, Wood eight, Willoughby five and Mason Harris two.
Chandler Owenby tossed in 13 to guide Winston County, with Hayden Hodge adding eight points.
Cold Springs 58, Winston County 34 (Girls):
No. 5-ranked Cold Springs produced 10 3-point field goals on the evening to go with 34 points between sophomore Camryn Crider and senior Emme Willoughby, locking up the top seed for the Area 13 tournament in February.
Cold Springs gained a 20-11 advantage after the first period, scoring four baskets from three-point land. The Lady Eagles went on a 16-4 run in the second to open up a 36-15 advantage at intermission.
An unfortunate situation unfolded for Winston County with 3:24 to play in the second quarter. Guard Kady Bonds crashed into the bleachers near the Cold Springs bench, trying to retrieve the ball.
She suffered a bruise on her back and was not able to play for the rest of the game.
After being looked at by Encore trainer Bo Shirey, Bonds was able to return to the bench and be with her ball club for the second half.
The Lady Eagles zipped to a 58-26 lead after the third and went to the bench to finish up their fifth consecutive victory, giving them an 18-1 record and making it 4-0 in area play.
Crider tossed in 19 points, ripping the cords for five treys, and handed out four assists. Willoughby produced 15, Elizabeth Hill scored 11 and had 11 rebounds, Aubrey Negron added seven, Neely Ellison scored four and Sadie Terry two.
Winston County fell to 14-5 and 2-3 in the area. Leading the Lady Jackets were Abby West with 14 and Saige Blanton with 10.
Cold Springs hosts Falkville Friday night and travels to St. Bernard Tuesday to close out the Area 13 schedule.
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