Pickens County defeated South Lamar 82-68 to win the Class 1A Area 10 title Thursday night. It was the Tornadoes’ first area tournament championship since 2013.
By BRIAN HAMILTON, Editor
Pickens County lost the opportunity to host the area tournament after dropping two close games to South Lamar during the regular season. The third time appeared to be the charm, however, as the Tornadoes defeated the Stallions 82-68 for the Class 1A Area 10 championship.
“Our team has waited for this opportunity for the last two years,” Pickens County head coach Marcuss Barnes said. “Every year, we get in this situation and we always fail, but this year the guys persevered. It was tough, but they fought through it and I am proud of them for that.”
South Lamar got on the board first when Alex Carter hit a jump shot to go ahead 2-0, however, the Tornadoes would knot the score at 2-2 on their next possession. Jawuan Petty then used a spin move to get past a defender and lay the ball in for a 4-2 Pickens County lead. The Tornadoes would go on an 8-0 run until Malachi Oglen scored a basket to end the run, making the score 8-4.
A Petty three-pointer gave Pickens County an 11-4 lead, but two consecutive put-backs by Dave Stokes made the score 11-8. The Stallions would later cut the lead to 15-13 when Oglen drained a three-point basket. Herachio Washington hit a layup near the end of the first quarter, as the Tornadoes took a 21-19 to start the second quarter.
See complete story in the Pickens County Herald.
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