Spartans fall short in area championship
Spain Park withstood a furious Mountain Brook rally to win the Class 7A, Area 6 Tournament, 77-74, at Spain Park High School on Saturday night.
Mountain Brook had the ball with a chance to tie at the end, but the shot went begging, and the Jags held on to what was a ten-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
“We’ve been preparing for a long time for these clutch situations,” Spain Park guard Justin Brown said. “We put that mentality into this game right here to get this championship.”
With 1:38 to play, Clay Collins drained a three-pointer to make it a 75-71 game. On the ensuing possession, the Spartans defense drew a charging foul. Trendon Watford came through in the clutch, canning a three to pull Mountain Brook within a point with 23 seconds remaining.
Austin Wiley hit a pair of free throws to seal the game for the Jags.
“Great game on the road,” Mountain Brook head coach Bucky McMillan said. “We always think we’re going to win the fourth quarter.”
Wiley and Jamal Johnson each scored 23 points for Spain Park, but the game leader was Watford, who filled up the stat sheet for the Spartans with 24 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three blocks on the night.
Jameson Floyd scored eight of his ten points in the first quarter, as Spain Park opened up a 25-19 lead. Wiley blocked three shots and converted a pair of and-one baskets – where he scored while being fouled. He picked up 12 points in the first.
Justin Brown scored ten points on the night, but the peripheral plays are what he took away from the game.
“It was a matchup of defense, free throws, and rebounding…it was a team effort,” he said.
Senior Jack Kline had 18 points with six boards in the game. Fellow senior Joe Donald made a handful of big plays, including a three to beat the halftime buzzer, a reverse layup on a fast break, and a buzzer-beating basket at the end of the third quarter.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” McMillan said. “He’s a senior. He’s just the type of player that, scoring or not, he brings a different level of maturity to the team. He’s made for these types of games.”
Aside from Johnson and Wiley, Spain Park head coach Donnie Quinn also emphasized the whole team in order for the Jags to have success.
“That’s what I’ve always said. We’ve got the two best players, but you have to make everybody else just as good as that’s where we’ve got to work,” he said.
Sean Elmore added 13 points and four rebounds for the Spartans, and Drew Smith dished out four assists.
“We had a lot of guys step up, and I thought Spain Park had some guys step up,” McMillan said.
Next up for both teams is the regional round of the state playoffs. Spain Park will play at Jacksonville State University on Thursday, against Grissom at 1:30 p.m.
Mountain Brook plays Gadsden City, also at Jacksonville State, at 10:30 a.m. Thursday.