By Rob Patrick
Photos by Rick Nation and Kevin Nagle
The Bryant Hornets freshman team hit the floor at the Bryant Middle School gym Thursday night energized, apparently ready to snap their three-game losing streak. By the end of the first half, they had built a double-digit lead that eventually reached 16 and held through the end of the third quarter.
But, after a nice give-and-go that resulted in a basket by Mitch Scoggins off a feed from Brian Reed with 2:36 left in the third quarter, the Hornets went dry. They managed just two free throws the rest of regulation.
As a result, the Pulaski Academy Junior Bruins rallied to tie the game on a driving basket by Blake Wiggins with :04.4 left in regulation.[more]
The Hornets got it going again in overtime and led 44-42 with :05.9 left but a three-point play with :00.5 to go by Sean Corrothers lifted the Bruins to a stunning 45-44 win.
The Bryant team includes Phillip Barnett, Dakota Besancon, Chase Christie, Brandon Cranford, Cedarrian Crosby, Evan Davis, Trevor Ezell, Greyson Giles, T.J. Hall, Austin Hammonds, Hunter Holder, Matt Jernigan, Spencer Kilgore, Slade Lewis, Madre London, Dylan Masters, Davis Nossaman, Gray Orman, Garrett Phillips, C.J. Rainey, Brian Reed, Mitchell Scoggins and Caleb Strain.
Orman tried to set up to take a charge on Corrothers who drove the length of the floor for hit game-tying hoop. But the officials ruled that Orman wasn’t quite set when contact occurred and Corrothers was awarded the free throw that, after a Bryant timeout, he converted to win the game.
Rainey had put the Hornets ahead at the free throw line. They trailed 42-41 with :56 left in the overtime. He was fouled with :41.6 showing and knocked down both free throws to give his team a 43-42 edge.
Pulaski Academy’s Chase Snider misfired on a 3-point try but the Hornets turned the ball over. In turn, they forced a Bruins turnover and, with :05.9 showing, Rainey went to the line again. Though he missed his first shot, he canned the second to make it a 2-point lead before Corrothers’ dash to the other end.
It was a gut-punch loss for the Hornets, evening their overall record to 8-8 going into their official conference opener against Cabot North on Monday.
Giles led all scorers in the game with 13 points including a pair of 3’s. London added 11 and Scoggins 10. Marcus Wallace led Pulaski Academy with 12 points but he had hit just 2 of 13 shots from the field going into the last two minutes of overtime. He connected on his final two shots both of which gave his team a lead.
Corrothers, Wiggins and Tyler Colquitt each had 9 points for the Bruins.
Bryant gained the upper hand in a hurry. After Colquitt hit the first basket of the game, Giles fed Scoggins for a bucket to tie it then grabbed an offensive rebound and scored to put the Hornets ahead.
They never trailed again until overtime.
London scored off a drive to make it 6-2 and the Hornets built a 12-5 lead before the end of the period.
After Snider scored to start the second quarter, Orman answered with Reed getting an assist. Reed then made a steal that led to Giles’ first triple and the Hornets’ first double-digit lead at 17-7.
Wiggins hit a layup but London banked in a 12-footer and Giles drained his second trey to bump the margin to 22-9.
Wiggins led a late burst by the Bruins that had them within 22-14 at the break.
But Bryant started the second half with a blitz of its own. London drained a 3 then Scoggins scored off a sweet dish from Strain. London followed with another bucket and Rainey hit a free throw and the lead was 30-14.
Moments later, however, Bryant’s dry spell commenced after Scoggins made it 34-18. It was still 34-23 going into the fourth quarter but a 3 by Corrothers started the fourth quarter and Bryant didn’t score again until the Bruins were within 34-31. Rainey broke the drought with a free throw with 2:00 left in regulation.
Free throws by Colquitt and Corrothers trimmed the lead to 35-34. Bryant had two free-throw opportunities to extend the margin. On the first with :25.2 showing, Giles hit the front end but a lane violation cost the second. After a Colquitt miss, Scoggins went to the line with :15.1 to go but his first shot refused to fall and Wiggins was able to tie it on a drive into the lane and a flip from six feet out.
Colquitt’s stickback to start the overtime gave the Bruins their first lead since 2-0. Rainey tied it with two free throws. Wallace hit a baseline jumper then Scoggins hit the offensive glass and scored. It was Bryant’s first field goal since his bucket with 2:36 left in the third quarter that had given the Hornets a 16-point lead.
Corrothers, however, missed two free throws and teammate Tristan Fowler missed a follow shot so when Strain was fouled with 1:06 to play, his free throw put the Hornets back in the lead, 41-40.
Wallace, though, drove for a layup that put his team back on top going into the final minute of the overtime.
JUNIOR BRUINS 45, JUNIOR HORNETS 44, OT
Score by quarters
Pulaski Academy 5 9 9 13 9 — 45
BRYANT 12 10 12 2 8 — 44
JUNIOR BRUINS 45
Wallace 4-15, 4-6 12, Korita 0-2 0-0 0, Corrothers 2-7 4-7 9, Wiggins 4-10 1-2 9, Colquitt 2-7 5-6 9, Snider 1-5 0-0 2, Fowler 2-3 0-0 4, Holmes 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-49 14-21 45.
JUNIOR HORNETS 44
Rainey 0-5 7-10 7, Strain 0-1 1-2 1, Giles 5-10 1-1 13, London 4-14 0-2 11, Scoggins 5-8 0-1 10, Crosby 0-0 0-2 0, Orman 1-1 0-0 2, Reed 0-1 0-0 0, Nossaman 0-0 0-0 0, Ezell 0-0 0-0 0, Holder 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 16-40 9-18 44.
Three-point field goals: Bryant 3-6 (Giles 2-4, London 1-1, Rainey 0-1), Pulaski Academy 1-16 (Corrothers 1-1, Wallace 0-9, Snider 0-4, Korita 0-2). Rebounds: Bryant 34 (London 8, Giles 7), Pulaski Academy 29 (Colquitt 8). Turnovers: Bryant 23, Pulaski Academy 17. Team fouls: Bryant 17, Pulaski Academy 18. Fouled out: Pulaski Academy, Wiggins, Colquitt.
