St. Aloysius pounds Mize|[1/29/06]
Published 12:00 am Monday, January 30, 2006
St. Aloysius collected a pair of trophies Saturday afternoon, each completing double-digit victories to win Red Carpet Classic championships.
Chase Smith scored 14 points and John Robert Burnett added 13 as the Flashes defeated Mize, 50-38. In the first game of the day, Annie Beaugh scored 20 points and Sarah Kerut netted 12 as the Lady Flashes improved to 22-1 with a 55-43 victory.
The girls game began at 10 a.m. – about 14 hours after they completed a win over Dexter on Friday night. The boys followed at 11:30 and coach Drew McBrayer said the short turnaround had an effect on his players.
“The guys, having a tough loss last night and going up-and-down the floor, started slow. You always expect that,” said McBrayer, whose Flashes improved to 17-6 with the win. “They got it turned around defensively, which is always a plus.”
The Flashes’ defense stifled Mize (5-17) in the second quarter after the two teams battled to a near standstill in the first.
The Flashes led 13-11 at the end of the first quarter and Mize tied the game in the early seconds of the second quarter. The Flashes’ defense responded, holding the Bulldogs scoreless for nearly seven minutes, holding a 31-15 lead at the half.
“We were a little sluggish at first, but were able to turn it around,” said Chris Johnson, a Port Gibson resident who left for Vicksburg at 8 in the morning.
Mize opened the third quarter hitting five straight shots, eventually cutting what was an 18-point deficit down to 10. With 21 seconds left in the third quarter. After the Bulldogs further trimmed the deficit to 36-29, Smith converted a three-point play in the closing seconds of the third to get the lead back to 10 points.
“Our defense got sloppy and our offense started making careless mistakes and turning the ball over,” Johnson said.
T.C. Keith led Mize with 10 points, while Chris Creel scored eight in the loss.
The Flashes, who missed 14 free throws in Friday night’s loss, connected on 20 of 26 throws in Saturday’s win.
The Flashes also held a 35-25 rebounding advantage.
“We’ve been like that almost all season,” McBrayer said.
(G) St. Al 55, Mize 43.
Beaugh’s 20 points highlighted another big win for the streaking Lady Flashes.
St. Al jumped out to a 30-12 lead at halftime, built the lead to 21 at the end of the third quarter and cruised through the fourth.
The Lady Flashes only loss this season came at the hands of undefeated Franklin County, a Class 3A team.
Elizabeth Mazzanti poured in nine points in the victory,.
“Our girls are playing with a lot of confidence right now,” McBrayer said. “Any time you can come out and win like they have this year, that confidence just keeps growing and growing.
“It was a little slow start, but we came down and knocked in some shots and were able to push the lead.”
Vanessa Autmon and Latasha Barnes each scored 12 points for Mize (7-15).