By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Sports Editor

VINCENT – After a slow first quarter against Tarrant on Tuesday, Jan. 15, the Vincent Yellow Jackets were able to bounce back with a dominant final three quarters to pick up their third area win in a row and fifth win in the last six games.

They Yellow Jackets scored just five points in the opening quarter, while giving up 14 points, but responded by allowing just 16 more points the entire game in an overriding defensive performance that led to a 55-30 victory to improve to 3-0 in area play and 10-8 overall this season.

It was an impressive turnaround after a sluggish start on both ends of the floor that saw Vincent fall behind 14-1 in the opening period due to difficult shooting woes.

The Yellow Jackets shot just 1-11 from the field in the opening quarter, making one of their five 3-pointers attempted, while knocking down 2-4 from the free throw line.

They were able to end the quarter on a 4-0 run to gain some confidence, but the Jackets knew they were going to have to play much better on both ends of the floor.

Vincent showed that new effort in the second quarter, and it started on the defensive end of the floor thanks to eight steals in the period, which became a game-high for any quarter, and started a trend of three consecutive quarters with at least six steals.

That combined with taking their field goal percentage from 9.1 percent to 36.8 percent, helped the Jackets continue that 4-0 run to end the first quarter and extend it to a 18-0 into the second period, which gave them a 19-14 advantage.

Vincent was outscored 7-4 the rest of the quarter, but had completely flipped the script and led 23-21 at the half.

Coming out of the locker room into the second half, Vincent knew it had figured something out defensively and continued to make life difficult for Tarrant.

The Yellow Jackets got six offensive rebounds and six more steals to lead to four second chance points and seven points off turnovers.

That production along with another decent shooting percentage allowed for Vincent to control both ends of the floor again and put together a 14-3 run in the quarter to take control of the game with a 37-24 lead heading to the final quarter.

It was a dominant effort that continued into the final period, especially on the offensive glass, as the Yellow Jackets came down with 10 offensive boards in the frame to lead to eight second chance points.

Vincent also picked up seven more steals and put up 10 more points off of turnovers, which led to the Jackets extending the lead throughout the period before pulling away for the 55-30 victory.

Malik Hamilton led the way with 13 points for Vincent, while also posting four steals, two assists and two rebounds.

Jackson McGinnis was able to put together a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds, while also posting four blocks. Tae McGregor added 10 more points, while Kaleb Wilson had 10 steals and Chris Hardie had nine rebounds.