By Staff
Lady Devils also win; Brewer boys suffer close loss to Hazel Green on the road
Staff Reports, Hartselle Enquirer
Falkville High School's Blue Devils and Lady Blue Devils both emerged as the winner in their season-opening basketball games at Mount Hope last Thursday night.
The Blue Devils outgunned the Yellow Jackets 73-5 behind the red-hot shooting and rebounding of junior forward Heath Alford and the Lady Blue Devils chalked up a 43-29 win over the Lady Yellow Jackets.
Alford canned 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Blue Devils in both categories. Point guard Cody Sewell was credited with nine assists and nine steals and turned over the ball only once. Adam Dye followed Alford in scoring with nine points. Justin Blanchard and Thomas Holt each added eight points.
As a team the Blue Devils made 35 of 69 shots from the field for a 51 percent average; however, they struggled in free throw shooting as they made only five of 14.
"Our guys played hard," head coach Yancey Randolph said. "We dressed out 13 players and played them all.
In the girls game, Emily Dabbs led the Lady Blue Devils with 23 points. She is an eighth grader and a first-year varsity starter. Her scoring consisted of three three-pointers, six two-point field goals and two free throws. Katrina Wildmon and Whitney Eaves each scored six points.
The Lady Blue Devils pulled down 41 rebounds, made 36 percent of their shots from the field and converted 42 percent of their shots from the free throw line. They were ahead 5-4 after one period, 19-10 at halftime and 33-12 after three quarters.
"Our defense played pretty good but we were sloppy on offense," head coach Jeff Andrews said. "Our execution and shooting has to improve in order for us to have a successful season."
Both coaches agreed that getting a win on the road was a good way to start the season regardless of the circumstances.
Brewer boys open season with loss to Hazel Green
The Patriots opened the 2005-06 season with a 66-61 loss on the road at Hazel Green.
Brewer trailed by two points at the half, but was unable to come back against its Class 6A opponent.
Matt Minson led the Patriots with 17 points; Kyle Shelton had 13 points; Alex Bland had 12 points; and Rusty Boyd contributed 11 points.
Brewer hosts Hartselle Friday.