By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Sports Editor 

VINCENT – While they got off to a slow start offensively in the first quarter on Tuesday, Jan. 8, the Vincent Yellow Jackets were able to bounce back with three quarters of 16-plus points to pull off a 66-46 win in their area opener in front of a home crowd.

The Yellow Jackets (8-8, 1-0) scored just nine points in the opening quarter, but responded with 16 points in the second quarter and then posted 20 in the third and 21 in the fourth to pull away for the 20-point victory.

Vincent’s slow start offensively wasn’t because of lack of effort; it was just the way the game was played in the first two quarters with both defenses really controlling the pace of the game.

The Yellow Jackets actually fell behind 5-2 close to the midway point of the quarter, but was able to respond with a 9-0 run to end the period, which put them in front 9-5 at the end of the period.

A reason for the slow start was their 1-8 mark from beyond the arc and 0-6 mark from the free throw line in the quarter. They were able to get six offensive rebounds in the period and a game-high 11 overall, which allowed them plenty of opportunities in the frame.

Eventually, the Yellow Jackets were able to make field goals late in the period knocking down their lone 3-pointer and two additional field goals in the final few minutes.

That strong end to the quarter seemed to spark Vincent in the second period.

While Altamont came back to cut the deficit to two points at 11-9, the Yellow Jackets answered with a 10-0 run to take a 21-9 lead late in the frame.

That strong effort was thanks to a much better period from the field shooting 7-13 overall. Vincent got seven points off turnovers in the quarter and six second chance points, all of which allowed the Jackets to take a 25-13 lead into the half.

Vincent’s defense wasn’t quite as sound in the second half, but the offense was finally completely heated up and continued shooting well from the field.

While the Yellow Jackets gave up 17 points in the third quarter, they were able to shoot 8-15 from the floor, making eight of their 12 jump shots in the period to post 20 points.

Altamont cut the deficit to six points midway through the quarter, but then Vincent responded with a 13-4 run to end the period, which allowed the Jackets to extend their lead to 45-30 heading to the fourth.

In the final quarter, the Yellow Jackets had their third consecutive 53.8-percent shooting period from the floor making seven of their 13 shots in the frame to post a game-high 21 points.

Defensively, they gave up 16 points, but Altamont never got closer than the 15-point deficit at the beginning of the quarter, as the Yellow Jackets swelled the lead to pull away for the 20-point victory.

Vincent got double-figure scoring from four different players led by Chris Hardie and Ryshod Keith with 19 points apiece. Hardie shot 8-14 from the field, while Keith was 6-14 from the field.

As usual, Hardie was strong in the post and added 14 rebounds to his 19 points for a double-double performance, while Keith also posted a double-double with 10 boards. Hardie also led the team with four steals.

Behind that, Jackson McGinnis posted 14 points and Malik Hamilton added 11 with each adding five and two rebounds, respectively.