WEST POINT, Ala. – After splitting their opening-round games of the West Point Christmas Tournament Thursday night, Cold Springs and West Point returned to Jim Boyd Gymnasium Friday night for another pair of tournament matchups. The Eagles fell to Brewer in the losers bracket 65-51 and the Warriors defeated Corner 76-62 to advance to Saturday’s finals.
Brewer 65 – Cold Springs 51 (varsity boys)
The Eagles jumped out to a 10-0 lead early in the opening quarter, but it was tough sledding for Cold Springs after that. A 9-1 Brewer scoring run cut the lead to 11-9 late in the first quarter but a Seth Williams basket gave the Eagles a 15-12 lead going into the second quarter.
A tough basket from Adam Hill made it 17-13 early in the second but a quick three-pointer on the other end cut it to 17-16. Another three from the Patriots gave them a 24-19 lead midway through the period but a Brodi Peppers jumper trimmed the lead to 26-22 with two minutes before the half. Peppers managed to score another basket at the buzzer, but Brewer led the way 31-26 at the break.
The first three minutes of the second half were scoreless until Logan Rice drilled a three to cut the lead to 31-29 but the Patriots finished the third on a 10-3 run to take a 42-32 advantage into the final frame.
A Brodi Williams jumper made it 45-36 early in the fourth quarter but Brewer was able to pull ahead 54-39 midway through the quarter and held on to defeat the Eagles 65-51. Peppers led Cold Springs with 15 points in the loss, followed by Tanner Kilgo with 12, Hill with nine and Micah Calver with six. The Eagles will be back on the floor at West Point to take on Falkville at 9 a.m.
West Point 76 – Corner 62 (varsity boys)
A Will Cochran basket gave the Warriors an early 6-5 lead over Corner and after a scoring run put the Yellow Jackets up 16-10 midway through the quarter, another Cochran basket combined with five straight points from Kobe Bowers gave West Point a 17-16 lead. Bowers knocked down a three late in the first and Aubry Cleghorn added another triple at the buzzer to give the Warriors a 32-23 lead going into the second.
West Point maintained a 37-23 lead early in the second and continued to make shots. Another Cochran bucket followed by an and-one play from Bowers made it 42-30 with three minutes remaining in the half and Bowers added a pair of free throws in the final seconds of the period to put the Warriors up 48-32 at the half.
A basket from Logan Selby made it 51-34 early in the third and West Point held onto a 55-41 advantage midway through the quarter. The Patriots managed to trim the lead to 58-47 late in the third and had the lead down to 10 by the start of the fourth quarter. A three-pointer from Tyler White stretched the lead to 63-52 early in the fourth and a Cochran three on the next possession made it 66-54. Brewer began fouling the Warriors in an effort to extend the game, but West Point was good enough from the free throw line to pull away and win it 76-62, punching a ticket to tomorrow’s tournament finals.
Cochran led the Warriors with 23 points in the win, followed closely by Bowers with 22. White added 12 points for West Point and Cleghorn finished with 11. The Warriors will play either Danville or Hayden in the West Point Christmas Tournament finals Saturday at 12:45 p.m.
Other Friday scores:
Fairview 44 – Arab 34 (varsity girls)
Fairview 66 – Gardendale 58 (varsity boys)
Central-Tuscaloosa 64 – Cullman 56 (varsity boys)
Cullman 66 – Leeds 43 (varsity boys)
Good Hope 57 – Sulligent 34 (varsity girls)
Winfield 45 – Good Hope 38 (varsity girls)
Good Hope 71 – North Murray 62 (varsity boys)
Alexandria 54 – Holly Pond 41 (varsity girls)
Copyright 2019 Humble Roots, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
