The Bulloch Academy boys began the defense of their 2007 GISA Region 2-AA crown with a rousing 68-44 romp over Trinity Christian School of Dublin Tuesday night.
Darion Carter led the Gators with 19 points while Will Powell added 11 in the one-sided affair, which featured a rowdy student section with a German national flag and Viking helmets and a sweaty and slick floor.
Powell opened the contest with a three-point basket but it was the Crusaders (3-8, 1-1) which crept out to a lead as their German exchange student, junior Leif Troelenberg, nailed two treys. But the Gators (8-3, 1-0) finally found their rhythm late in the quarter and went on a 6-0 run with under a minute to play.
Bulloch’s German exchange student, junior Arne Bencker, took a pass from Powell after a theft and pushed in a layup for a 15-12 lead with under a minute to play. Another steal led to Carter’s monster dunk with 17.5 seconds left. Junior Chan Newton got a rebound from a foul shot and put it back in for a 19-12 lead at the end of the opening quarter. Both Bencker and Newton had six points each on the night while sophomore Taylor Burke added eight.
The second quarter saw the slippery conditions on one end of Bulloch’s parquet floor worsen, so lower-school students Will Bowen, Lanier Olliff and Griffin Walker were armed with towels and sent hustling to the baseline and in the paint to wipe away the moisture on each trip the ball took down the floor. Then the trio would scurry out of the way went the ball came back up the floor.
Slick floor or not, the Gators began to slowly pull away in the second. Newton gave BA a 10-point lead midway through the quarter on a steal and a layup. Carter’s three-point play at the 2:23 mark gave the home squad a 32-19 lead.
Up 36-22 at the beginning of the third quarter, Bulloch went on a quick 8-0 run to take its largest lead of the night, 44-22. Then the Gators hit a slump as Trinity mounted a comeback behind Will Johnson. The sophomore netted nine of his game-high 20 points to cut the lead to 48-34 by the end of the quarter.
BA went on another 8-0 run to open the fourth and pulled out to a 56-34 advantage. The Gators took a 62-37 lead at the 4:51 mark and Bulloch head coach Chandler Dennard substituted freely.
Bulloch free-throw shooting was much better as the Gators drilled 10 of 12 shots from the charity stripe.
Bulloch Academy travels to St. Simons Island Friday for a region battle with Frederica Academy.
Lady Crusaders 60,
Lady Gators 51
Addie Reddick scored a season-high 17 points as the Lady Gators dropped their fourth straight.
The Lady Crusaders (11-4, 2-0) raced out to a 20-10 lead by the end of the first quarter as senior Laine Hobbs went over the 1,000-point plateau for her career. Hobbs netted a game-high 20 points.
Bulloch (7-6, 0-1) trailed by as many as 20 points early in the second but the scrappy Lady Gators kept plugging away and finally it paid off. Reddick hit back-to-back buckets late in the quarter to help Bulloch pull back to 11, 35-24, at the half. The feisty junior had nine of her total in the quarter.
Sophomore point guard Kate Anna Akins hit the first basket of the third quarter to cut the TCS advantage to nine, 35-26. But the Dublin girls were just bigger and stronger and ran out to a 16-point lead, 47-31, by the end of the quarter. BA turnovers and steals by the quick-handed Lady Crusaders led to Bulloch’s demise.
Still, Paul Webb’s bunch never quit as they rallied late against Trinity’s subs. Akins cut the score to eight with 2:31 left. An Abi Foy layup with 1:31 left saw Bulloch trail by just five, 56-49. But missed shots and turnover helped Trinity hold on for the win.
Kaylee Lanier added nine for the Lady Gators while Foy had eight. Anna Claire Knight added 13 for the Lady Crusaders.
Trinity 55, Bulloch 18 (B-Team Girls)
The Lady Crusaders outscored Bulloch 18-0 in the second quarter as TCS simply overpowered the Lady Gators.
Jordan Mimbs led Trinity with 11 points while Amanda Beacham had 10 and Blair McMichael added eight. Morgan Anderson led Bulloch (1-4) with five and Taylor Collins added four.
Darion Carter led the Gators with 19 points while Will Powell added 11 in the one-sided affair, which featured a rowdy student section with a German national flag and Viking helmets and a sweaty and slick floor.
Powell opened the contest with a three-point basket but it was the Crusaders (3-8, 1-1) which crept out to a lead as their German exchange student, junior Leif Troelenberg, nailed two treys. But the Gators (8-3, 1-0) finally found their rhythm late in the quarter and went on a 6-0 run with under a minute to play.
Bulloch’s German exchange student, junior Arne Bencker, took a pass from Powell after a theft and pushed in a layup for a 15-12 lead with under a minute to play. Another steal led to Carter’s monster dunk with 17.5 seconds left. Junior Chan Newton got a rebound from a foul shot and put it back in for a 19-12 lead at the end of the opening quarter. Both Bencker and Newton had six points each on the night while sophomore Taylor Burke added eight.
The second quarter saw the slippery conditions on one end of Bulloch’s parquet floor worsen, so lower-school students Will Bowen, Lanier Olliff and Griffin Walker were armed with towels and sent hustling to the baseline and in the paint to wipe away the moisture on each trip the ball took down the floor. Then the trio would scurry out of the way went the ball came back up the floor.
Slick floor or not, the Gators began to slowly pull away in the second. Newton gave BA a 10-point lead midway through the quarter on a steal and a layup. Carter’s three-point play at the 2:23 mark gave the home squad a 32-19 lead.
Up 36-22 at the beginning of the third quarter, Bulloch went on a quick 8-0 run to take its largest lead of the night, 44-22. Then the Gators hit a slump as Trinity mounted a comeback behind Will Johnson. The sophomore netted nine of his game-high 20 points to cut the lead to 48-34 by the end of the quarter.
BA went on another 8-0 run to open the fourth and pulled out to a 56-34 advantage. The Gators took a 62-37 lead at the 4:51 mark and Bulloch head coach Chandler Dennard substituted freely.
Bulloch free-throw shooting was much better as the Gators drilled 10 of 12 shots from the charity stripe.
Bulloch Academy travels to St. Simons Island Friday for a region battle with Frederica Academy.
Lady Crusaders 60,
Lady Gators 51
Addie Reddick scored a season-high 17 points as the Lady Gators dropped their fourth straight.
The Lady Crusaders (11-4, 2-0) raced out to a 20-10 lead by the end of the first quarter as senior Laine Hobbs went over the 1,000-point plateau for her career. Hobbs netted a game-high 20 points.
Bulloch (7-6, 0-1) trailed by as many as 20 points early in the second but the scrappy Lady Gators kept plugging away and finally it paid off. Reddick hit back-to-back buckets late in the quarter to help Bulloch pull back to 11, 35-24, at the half. The feisty junior had nine of her total in the quarter.
Sophomore point guard Kate Anna Akins hit the first basket of the third quarter to cut the TCS advantage to nine, 35-26. But the Dublin girls were just bigger and stronger and ran out to a 16-point lead, 47-31, by the end of the quarter. BA turnovers and steals by the quick-handed Lady Crusaders led to Bulloch’s demise.
Still, Paul Webb’s bunch never quit as they rallied late against Trinity’s subs. Akins cut the score to eight with 2:31 left. An Abi Foy layup with 1:31 left saw Bulloch trail by just five, 56-49. But missed shots and turnover helped Trinity hold on for the win.
Kaylee Lanier added nine for the Lady Gators while Foy had eight. Anna Claire Knight added 13 for the Lady Crusaders.
Trinity 55, Bulloch 18 (B-Team Girls)
The Lady Crusaders outscored Bulloch 18-0 in the second quarter as TCS simply overpowered the Lady Gators.
Jordan Mimbs led Trinity with 11 points while Amanda Beacham had 10 and Blair McMichael added eight. Morgan Anderson led Bulloch (1-4) with five and Taylor Collins added four.
