By BAKER ELLIS / Sports Editor

Montevallo boys stay perfect in area play

Tavarus Hall and Tae’ Smith led Montevallo once again in the Bulldogs’ first game of 2016 against Jefferson Christian. Hall had 19 points and 12 rebounds while Smith led all scorers with 26 points and chipped in eight boards as well as Montevallo moved to 15-5 (3-0) with the 84-71 win. Montevallo outscored Jefferson Christian 28-16 in the second quarter to open a lead that the Eagles’ could not recover from.

 

Jag boys handle Hewitt-Trussville easily

Spain Park returned to Alabama for good after taking part in the NXT Hoop Fest in Nashville, Tenn., over the break with an area game against Hewitt-Trussville. The Jaguars made short work of the Huskies, winning handily 69-46. Austin Wiley led the way for Spain Park with 19 points, 20 rebounds and three blocks for his fourth consecutive double-double, while Jamal Johnson, Justin Brown and Jamison Floyd were also all in double figures.

 

Oak Mountain boys get off to strong start in area play

Payton Youngblood led Oak Mountain with 16 points and eight boards to go along with three blocks in the Eagles’ first area game of the season against Tuscaloosa County. Will Stephenson added 10 points as well as Oak Mountain beat the Wildcats 53-49 to move to 1-0 in area play.

 

Vincent boys get area win over BB Comer

The second-ranked team in class 2A moved to 13-4 on the season with a 16-point win over area opponent BB Comer on Tuesday night. EJ Datcher had 18 points to go along with eight rebounds, four blocks and two assists to lead Vincent while Zavien Kelley had 16 points and four assists, Wes King had 14 points and 10 boards for the only double-double of the evening, and Stephen Campbell had 12 points, four assists and three steals.

 

Hoover gets past Thompson

Thompson fell to 11-8 on the season with a 61-56 loss to Hoover at home on Jan. 5 to open area play. Hoover, the defending 7A champion, has struggled out of the gate this season and brought a losing, 8-9 record into the game before pulling back to .500 with the win over the 7A No. 8 team in the state.

 

Lady Warriors fall to Hoover at home

Thompson hosted area rival Hoover in the first area game of the year for both, and the Lady Bucs escaped with a close, 49-45 win over the No. 3 Lady Warriors. Thompson fell to 15-3 with the loss.

 

Lady Eagles can’t get past Tuscaloosa County

Jacoby Sims’ seven three-pointers couldn’t lift Oak Mountain past Tuscaloosa County on Tuesday night. The Lady Eagles trailed by just two points at halftime, 19-17, but the Lady Wildcats pulled away in the second half thanks to the efforts of Brileigh Hannah and Tamia Knight, and beat the host Oak Mountain 50-40 to knock the Lady Eagles back to 0-1 in conference play.