West unbeaten on the road, even at the Dawg House
By Steve Williams
West continued its unusual win streak last week when it handed Bearden, one of the Top 5 ranked teams in the state, a 64-60 loss on its home floor aka the Dawg House.
“We have been a really solid road team this year,” said West Coach Tommy Eggleston. “It’s hard to figure out. Every game we’ve lost we were wearing our (home) white jerseys. For some reason when we go on the road, we are ready to play.”
The big guys on the inside – 6-7, 210-pound Devyn Martin and Kevin “The Avalanche” Jack – led the Rebels to their biggest win of the season. Martin dropped in 23 points and raked off 12 rebounds. Jack powered in 16 points and pulled down six boards.
“I just felt like we gave a good honest effort and were able to match the physicality of the game,” added Eggleston. “We never lost our cool. We took care of the ball at the end; just all the things you have to do to win a close game.”
Jailon Hill and Garrett Burch chipped in six points apiece and Robert Shuler added five.
King Hubbard was the high scorer for Bearden with 14 points. Junior standout Justin Nordin, who got into foul trouble early, scored only six points through the first three periods and finished with 12.
Domenic Mahoney hit two of the Bulldogs’ nine treys and totaled eight points. Sean Capshaw and Theo Mills added seven each and Drew Parrott five.
The victory upped West to 16-4 overall and 4-2 and tied for second with Maryville in District 4-4A. Bearden remains on top at 6-1 in the district and 19-4 for all games.
It was nip and tuck most of the way, with the biggest gap being six points.
West led through the first period until Bearden scored the last seven points to go ahead 16-13. The Rebels outscored the Bulldogs 23-17 in the second period for a 36-33 halftime advantage.
Martin cashed in an old fashion three-point play for a 52-49 lead after three stops. The final eight minutes were played like a chess match.
West took a timeout with 2:53 on the clock after Nordin scored inside to pull Bearden within one at 59-58.
The Rebels ran the clock down to 1:30 when Jack was fouled shooting. He sank both pressure-packed free throws to pad the lead to three.
After Bearden Coach Jeremy Parrott called a timeout at 1:21, Hubbard swished in a 15-footer to cut West’s margin to one (61-60). Bearden took another timeout with exactly 1:00 on the clock.
The first action when play resumed was a loose ball and a scramble for it. The tie-up and possession arrow pointed West’s way.
A blocking foul was called on Capshaw and sent Martin to the line for two pressure tosses. He hit both to give West a three-point lead (63-60) with 43 seconds remaining.
Nordin missed inside and Martin added another free throw to make it a four-point game.
Both Capshaw and Hubbard missed shots in the closing seconds and the Rebels’ Kalou Fofana dribbled out the remaining time.
Coach Eggleston called the win “huge, absolutely huge.”
The West coach noted Bearden was still on top in the district, “but it puts us in the running. We definitely want to be in one of those top two spots and hopefully we can find our way back to be No. 1.”
Jack said stopping key scorers like Nordin was the difference in the game. “We got him in foul trouble early.”
Martin added the win was “pretty big” for the Rebels’ in the district standings. “Every game counts.”
Martin also said the victory will help build more team confidence. “Going into the latter parts of February and March, I think we will need it.”
