An instantaneous traditional – EA Sports activities In the present day

After buying and selling mowers with No. 6 White Plains within the Calhoun County quarterfinals, No. 3 Alexandria dominates the foul line.

CALHOUN COUNTY TOWNSHIP
(at Jacksonville State)
Wednesday Boy Video games
Alexandria 66, White Plains 63
Piedmont 66, Anniston 53
Thursday Boys Video games
Alexandria vs. Oxford, 4:30 p.m
Jacksonville vs. Piedmont, 7:30 p.m
Friday Boys Sport
Championship, 8 p.m

By Joe Medley
East Alabama Sports activities In the present day

JACKSONVILLE – It has been years since WIll Ginn’s first Calhoun County match sport as head coach, however he is overcome the sensation of an Oxford-Ohatchee mismatch.

His first county match win? Teaching his alma mater? A becoming thought on a school residence flooring and with one of many county’s longest-serving and finest coaches?

Ginn might smile after No. 3 Alexandria survived a 66-63 upset of No. 6 White Plains in a traditional quarterfinal at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Wednesday.

The Valley Cubs beat … look ahead to it … No. 2 Oxford in Thursday’s 4:30 p.m. semifinals.

Gin stated he was a “younger buck” when he skilled for a yr at Ohatchee. He went to Alexandria, the place he was in his first season because the Valley Cubs’ varsity coach.

It is somewhat totally different, pitting the county’s second-largest college towards the county’s solely 6A college. One other time he tried it towards now-3A Ohatchee.

“We had been fairly effectively overwhelmed by Oxford,” he stated. “We have now the primary sport in Oxford. “We had some younger guys and so they performed arduous.”

On Thursday, Ginn will tackle an Oxford staff trying to prolong 5A Alexandria to 4 county titles and 5 in six years. The Valley Cubs can forestall Oxford from making a seventh straight finals look.

To get that likelihood, Ginn’s Alexandria staff needed to survive a late bid from longtime White Plains coach Chris Randall, with Luke Bussey and Josh Wheeler doing their finest to maintain the Wildcats even in 4 quarters of haymaker exchanges.

“I knew coach Randall was going to get them prepared and so they had some gifted youngsters,” Ginn stated. “Bussey can play the child. “He can draw and he can see the ground very effectively.”

Bussey completed with 21 factors, together with lengthy 3-pointers with 56.2 and 42.9 seconds left to deliver the Wildcats inside 58-55 and 60-58.

He hit an extended 3 between the highest and proper elbow within the closing sequence of the sport.

Randall noticed one thing deeper in Bussey’s last-minute drama. It got here after he had a steal and missed a layup.

“What I will take from this sport is Luke Bussey,” Randall stated. “Luke missed a layup, and that is an awesome alternative to cover, an awesome alternative to sulk and get out … and an awesome alternative to not end the sport, and what does he do?

“There isn’t a excuse. “He comes again and hits giants that give us an opportunity to win.”

The WIldcats additionally received 19 factors from ZJ Rosario and 5 3-pointers and 17 factors from Wheeler.

Every thing just about went in line with script in a sport that noticed 11 lead modifications and 7 ties, Randall stated.

“Their youngsters drew what we wished,” he stated.

White Plains wished Alexandria’s pitchers to make hits, and so they did. Drake Davis completed with 23 factors, together with 5 3-pointers. Fouled on a 3-point try within the second quarter, he made all three free throws to present Alexandria a 29-26 lead.

Davis, who has had a number of large hits for the Valley Cubs this season, known as it the most recent proof of how a lot he loves taking part in at The Pete.

“I did not play right here final yr,” he stated. “I simply warmed up, however I did not miss a beat final yr in warm-ups.

“I do not know what it’s about this place.”

Alexandria additionally received 3-point buckets from Evan Snow, Jaylen Henderson and Cleat Forrest.

Their pitching complemented Alexandria’s total infield energy, which helped the Valley Cubs earn a bonus early within the second half and a double within the fourth quarter. With Alexandria getting the bonus early, the Valley Cubs hit 27 free throws within the second half when White Plains was pressured to foul late to expire the clock.

They shot 15 of 24 within the fourth quarter, with Forrest 6-of-4, TK Downie 3-of-4 and Davis 2 within the closing minute.

“I really feel like we had the higher hand,” Ginn stated. “Regardless that they’d a giant child (6-foot-7 Carter Johnson), I felt like we usually had the within edge.

“They had been attempting to be actual bodily with us, and we did a greater job of not being so unfastened with the ball, being sturdy with the ball within the third quarter, and that helped the fouls.”

WHITE PLAINS – ZJ Rosario 8 1-1 19, Josh Wheeler 6 0-0 17, Luke Bussey 8 1-1 21, Carter Johnson 3 0-0 6. Dylan Barksdale 0 0-0 0, Paul Laube 0 0-0 0. Whole 25 2-2 63.
Alexandria – Drake Davis 6 6-7 23, Evan Snow 1 0-3 3, Antonio Ross 7 0-3 14, TK Downie 1 5-7 7, Jaylen Henderson 2 0-0 5, Kory Cargal 1 7-10 9, Cleat Forrest 1 2-4 5. Whole 19 20-34 66.

3-pointers: White Plains 11 (Rosario 2, Wheeler 5, Bussey 4), Alexandria 8 (Davis 5, Snow 1, Henderson 1, Forrest 1). Whole fouls: White Plains 21, Alexandria 16.

Cowl photograph: Alexandria’s Drake Davis scores 23 factors towards White Plains in a Calhoun County quarterfinal sport Wednesday at Pete Mathews Coliseum. (Picture by Greg Warren)