Lions maul Conquerors in 47-point rout

Jessieville junior Charlie Davis (13) goes up for a layup as Christian Ministries senior Jake Tankersley (0) defends in Friday’s game at Jessieville Sports Arena. - Photo by James Leigh of The Sentinel-Record
Jessieville junior Charlie Davis (13) goes up for a layup as Christian Ministries senior Jake Tankersley (0) defends in Friday’s game at Jessieville Sports Arena. - Photo by James Leigh of The Sentinel-Record

JESSIEVILLE -- Christian Ministries Academy could not contain Jessieville's offense as the Lions stretched a 52-9 halftime lead to a 74-27 rout Friday night at Jessieville Sports Arena.

The Lions came out shooting 3-pointers with the Conqueror's shooting inside to take a 9-4 lead, inducing an 11-0 run with 2:28 left in the first frame. A sly pass from CMA freshman Caden Robinson to junior Riley Burton defeated the streak and two quick layups from the Lions with a field goal from senior Conqueror Hunter Kirksey allowed a 25-9 lead going into the second period.

"We came out and shot the ball really, really well, and I think that just kind of catapulted everything else," Jessieville head coach Jared White said. "We wanted to play unselfish, play fast, do the things we normally do defensively. A great first half effort, and we tried to keep that intensity up."

Jessieville continued to pressure their opponent as the Lions left the Conquerors in the dust. CMA had difficulty handling the ball with sophomores Noah Zetts and Carson Hair turning multiple steals into buckets and leaving CMA scoreless for a 52-9 lead at intermission.

"Our team quickness defensively is probably what we utilize the best and we do a lot of good things on the ball, as far as just pressuring it, and we do a pretty good job rotating and not just giving up easy layups," White noted. "Typically, teams beat us by shooting it really well, and that's what I think we hang our hat on."

Christian Ministries senior Samuel Tankersley, left, and Jessieville sophomore Carson Hair battle for the ball as CMA freshman Caden Robinson (20) falls to the ground in Friday's game at Jessieville Sports Arena. - Photo by James Leigh of The Sentinel-Record
Christian Ministries senior Samuel Tankersley, left, and Jessieville sophomore Carson Hair battle for the ball as CMA freshman Caden Robinson (20) falls to the ground in Friday's game at Jessieville Sports Arena. - Photo by James Leigh of The Sentinel-Record

The Conquerors game started to pick up coming out of the break with back-and-forth shots from junior Landon Parchman and Kirksey inside the paint pulled them into double digits. Jessieville junior Jarrett Davis dished out to sophomore Matthew Huff and senior Ramon Gonzalez for layups, pushing out to a 60-13 lead as CMA answered with back-to-back treys at the 3:45 mark en route to a 54-25 lead going into the final frame.

Jessieville sophomore Joe Ouyang snagged a steal and hit a layup, producing another steal that evolved into a putback from Hair. CMA added another field goal to end its scoring as senior Trey Perkins added 6 points from inside the paint to set the final.

"Trey Perkins came to us this year and wanted to be on the basketball team, so he comes and practices with us for about an hour each day," White explained. "This was the first chance we got him in a game and heck, he went out there and got 6 points, and he'll remember that for the rest of his life."

Hair led the Lions with 11 points, 5 steals, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks, Davis had 8 points, 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals, and Zetts had 8 points, 3 steals and 3 rebounds. Junior Landen Daley had 7 points, 2 assists, and a rebound, Huff had 6 points and 5 boards, and senior B.J. Holloway had 6 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists.

*The junior Lions kept the junior Conquerors scoreless in the first quarter and part of the second to take a 55-22 victory at Jessieville Sports Arena Friday night.

Cade Elledge gave CMA their first point of the night from the charity stripe in the second period as their offense began to gain some ground with back-to-back buckets from Gavin Hicks and Isaiah Howard. With 30 seconds until break, Braxton Oliver sunk a 2-pointer from an Elledge assist with Noah Bradshaw immediately putting up another 2 points for 22-12 Jessieville lead at halftime.

After a pair of free throws from Jessieville's Hunter Pye, CMA went on a 5-0 run for a 24-17 deficit. Like their older counterparts, the junior Conquerors underwent adversity as Jessieville kept control of the ball as they were outscored 31-5 to finish the match.

Sports on 01/12/2020

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