In the opening game of the night, the Lady Chiefs defeated Cass’s girls, 66-31.
Colonels coach Greg Scott said Sequoyah, which led 45-43 at the end of the third, had increased its lead early in the fourth before his team’s rally.
“[They led] 50-45 with about 6 1/2 [minutes] in the fourth quarter, and we went on a 7-0 run to come back and take the lead. It was kind of back and forth from there,” Scott said.
Tony Mitchell pushed Cass in front with a jump shot, Kadeem Sutton hit a pair of free throws and Zeke Reed finished 3 for 4 from the line down the stretch. The Colonels ended the night 12 for 16 from the free throw line while the Chiefs shot 18 for 27.
Cass made 25 of its 62 shots.
Mitchell dropped in a game-high 24 points, and the Colonels also got offensive contributions from Reed, 15; Sutton, 15; Jozelle Payne, 6; and Drew McKaig, 4.
Scorers for Sequoyah were Blaine White, 19; Solomon Ajose, 17; Brandon Ingleton, 11; Yousiff Abdullah, 3; Preston Skersick, 3; Creigh Chandler, 2; and Austin Taylor, 1.
Scott said both teams didn’t begin the game all that well.
“[It was] kind of a lethargic first half by both teams, and we got out with a two-point lead,” he said.
Up 10-6 after the first and 25-23 at the half, Cass lost its lead in the third as the Chiefs poured in 22 points in the quarter to the Colonels’ 18.
“They had 11 free throw attempts in the third quarter, and actually that’s where they got us by those four points,” Scott said. “They were actually ahead two [45-43] by the end of the third, and we outscored ’em by 10 [points] in the fourth quarter.”
Cass entered the game yearning for a win following back-to-back losses — both on Saturday — to Chattahoochee and then last weekend to South Forsyth.
“We were tied with them [for sixth place] coming into this region game,” Scott said. “To come back and win this one was big.”
The Colonels (12-8, 5-5) can only hope even more significant victories await as they visit county rival Woodland Friday at 7:30 p.m. as well as Johns Creek Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
Of his team’s impending matchup with the Wildcats — who they led late but lost to 68-66 on a game-winning tip — Scott said, “If both teams play up to their capability, it’ll be an entertaining game for everyone to come watch. … I think everyone would take a duplicate of that [last] game — I just hope we come out on top [this time].”
The Cass girls wouldn’t mind a duplicate of their last matchup with Woodland, a 51-46 victory. Since defeating their cross-county rivals on Jan. 6, the Lady Colonels have hit the skids — following a modest two-game winning streak with seven straight losses.
The Lady Colonels (2-18, 1-9) have a chance to stop the bleeding Friday when they visit Woodland for the teams’ second meeting of the season. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Lady Purple Hurricanes 60, Cedartown 29
Though Cartersville didn’t near the season-high point total it put up the last time it faced Cedartown, the Lady Canes enjoyed the type of game every potential state qualifier can appreciate. Cartersville used its basketball game Tuesday against the host Lady Bulldogs — a 60-29 win — as an opportunity to fine tune its offensive sets and piece together different lineup combinations.
“We took tonight and tried to work on some things; [we’re] trying to get better with some things,” Lady Canes coach Donna Enis said. “The starters didn’t play a whole lot tonight. I wanted to work on some rebounding and a couple of things we wanted to do offensively. We really didn’t fastbreak as much as we usually do.”
“We played a few people at different positions,” she continued. “It’s good to have a game every once in a while where you kind of look at some different things.”
Even with some tinkering, Cartersville overpowered winless Cedartown, which was on the wrong side of a 90-26 score the last time the two met at the Storm Center.
The Lady Canes led 18-6 at the end of the first quarter and 27-14 at halftime, and they stretched that advantage to 53-22 with one quarter to go.
Scorers for Cartersville were Katie O’Connor, 12; Adrienne Green, 10; Kaelyn Irby, 10; Terika Mostella, 10; Kea Garnigan, 5; Stefanie Will, 5; Jazmine Baldwin, 3; Maya Jones, 2; McKenzie Mowry, 2; and D’Yasmine Richards, 1.
Up next for the Lady Canes (15-4, 5-1 Region 7B-AAA) is another sub-region contest Friday when they head for Gilmer. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Wildcats 62, Rome 49
Eager to get back on the court following its first loss of the basketball season, Woodland made good use of its return to the hardwood Tuesday. The Wildcats rebounded with a 62-49 victory at Rome.
Woodland coach Mike Tobin felt his team began the night rearing to go.
“We came out ready to play, and I thought we played four good quarters,” Tobin said. “I thought we did a good job putting four quarters together.”
The Wildcats coach said that was not the case last Saturday in a 50-47 loss at Lambert.
“I think we realized Lambert kind of beat us at our own game,” Tobin said. “We didn’t do the little things. … I think the guys were happy to get back on the court”
Returning to form with the sort of hustle that has been its trademark this season, Woodland led the Wolves 14-5 after the first quarter. Rome nearly matched the Wildcats’ point total in the second but still trailed 31-19 at the half. The two teams then put up identical quarter totals from the second as Woodland led 48-33 heading into the fourth, where the Wolves finally outscored the visitors — by two points.
Corey Tobin scored 15 points to lead the Wildcats, and Greg Murphy added 12; Brandon Thompson 11; Xavier Niblet 9; R.J. Williams 5; Deo Adams 4; Chandler Royal 4; and Tae Covington 2.
Woodland’s head coach was unsure if the team’s starting point guard would play and praised him for fighting through injury.
“R.J. Williams, we weren’t sure if he was gonna be able to play before the game … and he did a good job battling through the injury,” Mike Tobin said.
The Wildcats (19-1, 9-1 Region 7-AAAA) end their week with a home game against rival Cass on Friday at 7:30 p.m. and a 5 p.m. road game at Chattahoochee on Saturday.
Trion 49, Lady Eagles 35
While coach Michael Roberson and the Excel Christian Academy girls basketball team approach every game as a big game, Tuesday provided an opportunity for the Lady Eagles to pick up their first sub-region win. Trion, too, was hoping for its first Region 6A-A victory, which it earned — 49-35 — as Excel fell cold in the fourth quarter.
“That was really our downfall right there. We just couldn’t buy a basket for nothing,” said Roberson, whose team was outscored 17-5 in the final 8 minutes. “We were down by two [32-20] going [into] the fourth quarter, and that fourth quarter got us.”
It marked the Lady Eagles’ lowest output since the first when they led 6-4. The Lady Bulldogs led 23-19 at halftime.
Emily Willingham scored 12 points and Bekah Bell added 11 to give Excel two double-digit scorers on the night.
Roberson said the game had plenty of importance to it, especially with both teams aiming to get in the win column in sub-region play.
“We had talked before the game and this week. This was kind of a big game — [but] we always approach every game as a big game because it’s just the next game,” he said. “We were both 0-3 in the sub-region, so this was kind of a big game in that respect because both of us needed a win in the sub-region.”
The Lady Eagles (4-15, 0-4) will continue hunting for that first sub-region win Friday when they visit Bremen for a 6 p.m. contest.
“I just talked [to them] about how the season [isn’t] over. We have a lot to play for,” Roberson said of his words to Excel’s players afterward. “[I was] just trying to keep their spirits up and make ’em believe and understand that there is a lot to play for still.”
The first-year Lady Eagles coach said his players are still hanging in there with him, which was evidenced by how they played following losses to Darlington and Walker last week.
“I think they felt good about tonight, the way we played, because the last couple of games we haven’t played that well,” Roberson added.
Eagles 70, Trion 62
Excel Christian Academy added to its season-long win streak Tuesday, making Trion the fifth victim during a stretch of play that has seen the Eagles basketball team go from three games below .500 to two games over that mark.
A win is a win, and Excel (11-9, 3-1) certainly earned one, even if it wasn’t always a sight to behold.
“We played good basketball at times. When it was pretty, it was pretty and when it was ugly, it was ugly,” Eagles coach Jon-Michael Nickerson said.
Excel fell behind 18-12 after one quarter and trailed 33-30 at the half, but Nickerson said his team came out strong in the third. The Eagles led 49-44 going into the fourth.
Zach daCamara scored 19 points for Excel, and Ashton Roach matched that total to share the team high.
“It’s his third game back. He played lights-out, defense and offense,” Nickerson said of Roach, who is playing with a couple of stress fractures in his vertebrae. “He’s just a warrior, man.”
Mason Butt also reached double figures for the Eagles, adding 10 points.
After some good outings on the boards, Excel’s coach did have one major critique from the eight-point win.
“We struggled rebounding all night. We weren’t boxing out all night. It got to the point where it was just getting old,” Nickerson said. “Boxing out is definitely one of our weaknesses. We definitely have to get better at it.”
The Eagles certainly have to shore up those deficiencies if they hope to make the most of what Nickerson and his team have termed “payback weekend.” Excel visits Bremen — which it lost to 67-51 Jan. 3 — on Friday and hosts King’s Ridge — a 47-46 victor on Dec. 9 — on Saturday. Friday’s game tips off at 7:30 p.m. while Saturday is slated for a 3:30 p.m. tipoff.