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Feb. 11—TANNER — Decatur Heritage head coach Jason Marshall was worried going into Tuesday's game.
Playing at Tanner for the Class 2A, Area 15 championship, the Eagles had struggled in the past finding shots in the Rattlers' home gym.
However, that changed on Tuesday.
The Eagles made nine 3-pointers as they went on to defeat Tanner 77-68, claiming the area crown.
"Thank the good Lord above because we needed to make some shots," Marshall said. "They have a really good offense, so we called our press off and just tried to play good defense, and it led to some great looks on the offensive side."
The game was as close as could be in the first half, and the lead changed 10 times with six ties, ending with Tanner leading 30-28 at halftime.
Things changed in the second half though, as Decatur Heritage went on a 20-3 run at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth to put the game out of reach.
"We have a lot of offensive weapons, and when they get hot and play under control, we can be really good," Marshall said. "We played a complete game tonight, and that's something I was really proud of."
In the last meeting between the two teams, Decatur Heritage star Jordan Davis tried battling through the flu and it resulted in one of his worst games of the season. He rebounded on Tuesday, scoring a game-high 33 points with 24 coming in the second half.
"They got the best of us last time we played, and it was really frustrating for me because I was sick and didn't play my best," Davis said. "I really wanted to show out tonight."
Sam Gardner added 13 points, and Jaion Miller had 11. Rickey Speights Jr. led Tanner with 17 points, while Matthew Fletcher had 15.
It was a frustrating night for the Ratters as a nine-point third quarter spelled the end of their area championship hopes.
"They shot the ball well, and it's hard when you gameplan to stop certain guys and the other guys step up and make shots," Tanner head coach Kyle Owens said. "But I also think that our energy level depends on if we're making shots. If we're not making shots and the other team is, we tend to go flat.
"Our guys got to understand when they make a shot and we miss shot, we got to take the ball and drive to the hole as hard as possible to get us a bucket. We have to do something to change the momentum."
Davis and Miller made the All-Tournament team along with Jayden Cooper. Tanner's representatives were Speights, Fletcher, Cade Dorning and Kaden Freeman. Jack Sherron and Bryson McMullin from Lindsay Lane also made the team.
Both teams advanced to the subregional round later this week with a spot in the Northwest Regjonal tournament on the line. Decatur Heritage will host Belgreen, while Tanner will travel to Covenant Christian.
"We were in this spot last year. Our season didn't end tonight, just like it didn't end last year," Owens said. "It's going to be difficult going on the road, and it's going to come down to how do we handle adversity. We didn't handle it well tonight, and that's going to be our focus in practice the next three days."
— [email protected] or 256-340-2395. Twitter @CalebSuggs2
Continue reading...
Playing at Tanner for the Class 2A, Area 15 championship, the Eagles had struggled in the past finding shots in the Rattlers' home gym.
However, that changed on Tuesday.
The Eagles made nine 3-pointers as they went on to defeat Tanner 77-68, claiming the area crown.
"Thank the good Lord above because we needed to make some shots," Marshall said. "They have a really good offense, so we called our press off and just tried to play good defense, and it led to some great looks on the offensive side."
The game was as close as could be in the first half, and the lead changed 10 times with six ties, ending with Tanner leading 30-28 at halftime.
Things changed in the second half though, as Decatur Heritage went on a 20-3 run at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth to put the game out of reach.
"We have a lot of offensive weapons, and when they get hot and play under control, we can be really good," Marshall said. "We played a complete game tonight, and that's something I was really proud of."
In the last meeting between the two teams, Decatur Heritage star Jordan Davis tried battling through the flu and it resulted in one of his worst games of the season. He rebounded on Tuesday, scoring a game-high 33 points with 24 coming in the second half.
"They got the best of us last time we played, and it was really frustrating for me because I was sick and didn't play my best," Davis said. "I really wanted to show out tonight."
Sam Gardner added 13 points, and Jaion Miller had 11. Rickey Speights Jr. led Tanner with 17 points, while Matthew Fletcher had 15.
It was a frustrating night for the Ratters as a nine-point third quarter spelled the end of their area championship hopes.
"They shot the ball well, and it's hard when you gameplan to stop certain guys and the other guys step up and make shots," Tanner head coach Kyle Owens said. "But I also think that our energy level depends on if we're making shots. If we're not making shots and the other team is, we tend to go flat.
"Our guys got to understand when they make a shot and we miss shot, we got to take the ball and drive to the hole as hard as possible to get us a bucket. We have to do something to change the momentum."
Davis and Miller made the All-Tournament team along with Jayden Cooper. Tanner's representatives were Speights, Fletcher, Cade Dorning and Kaden Freeman. Jack Sherron and Bryson McMullin from Lindsay Lane also made the team.
Both teams advanced to the subregional round later this week with a spot in the Northwest Regjonal tournament on the line. Decatur Heritage will host Belgreen, while Tanner will travel to Covenant Christian.
"We were in this spot last year. Our season didn't end tonight, just like it didn't end last year," Owens said. "It's going to be difficult going on the road, and it's going to come down to how do we handle adversity. We didn't handle it well tonight, and that's going to be our focus in practice the next three days."
— [email protected] or 256-340-2395. Twitter @CalebSuggs2
Continue reading...
