By Staff
Justin Schuver, Hartselle Enquirer
Muscle Shoals boys 63, Hartselle boys 17
The Hartselle Tigers' season came to a surreal ending Friday night as the No. 9 Muscle Shoals Trojans knocked off the Area 13 champion by 46 points at the Pettey Center.
It was a game where the Tigers could never get going offensively – Jackson Holmes' lay-up with 2:44 left in the first quarter was the only points Hartselle scored in the first half. Muscle Shoals led 25-2 at the intermission.
The Tigers did not break double digits until a Tyler Young three-pointer with 5:11 left in the game made the score 54-11.
"You can put the blame on me," Hartselle coach Johnny Berry said in an emotional post-game interview where he had to fight back tears. "Coaches (Keith) Wright and (Gary) Orr did a great job with the defense and I didn't keep up my part of the bargain since I'm in charge of offense."
It was a tough way to end the season for Hartselle, which came into the year wanting to prove that a 2-25 record the season before was a fluke. The Tigers finished this season with a 20-13 mark.
"I really don't want this bad night to take away from what these kids did this year," Berry said. "I guess I'm a little more emotional with this group because of what they went through last year and with people talking about how we needed to change coaches or change philosophies or change players.
"They stood behind me and the other coaches the entire way and they were ready from day one to get this team back to where it needs to be. We want it to be where 20-win seasons and county and area championships are things to be expected by Hartselle boys' basketball."
In the fourth quarter, the Hartselle student section honored each senior by chanting the players' names. Those seniors were Jackson Holmes, Ryne Lindsey, Victor Stansberry, Clay Whatley and Tyler Young.
Alex Brown led Hartselle with eight points and Holmes added six. Muscle Shoals was led by Greg Johnson's 12 points.
Madison County boys 60, Priceville boys 42
The Bulldogs held close with the second-ranked Tigers, with Madison County holding just a 41-40 lead after three quarters. But the home team took off in the final period and ended Priceville's season, the school's first after moving from Class 2A to Class 4A. The Bulldogs made the Class 2A Final Four last year.
Senior guard Josh Bedwell led Priceville with 15 points and six rebounds. Fellow seniors Robert Varner and K.C. Green also had productive nights – Varner finished with nine points and five rebounds and Green had four assists.
Terrence Nance led Madison County with 17 points.