Golden Tigers capture fourth consecutive area title before beating Wenonah in sub-regional game

In a hectic, fast-paced game that felt closer than the final 77-66 scoreline suggests, Russellville pulled off the season sweep of Lawrence County to win the Class 5A Area 15 championship, the Golden Tigers’ fourth area title in as many years.

“The fun part for (the seniors) is they’ve never known not cutting down nets,” said Russellville head coach Patrick Odom. “That’s a testament to them and the consistency of our program. It’s never easy.”

Led by 17-point performances from senior Malachi Duncan and junior EJ King, Russellville opened up a lead that was ultimately commanding enough for the hosts to see off the Red Devils for the third time this season.

“Lawrence County’s kids played really hard,” said Odom, who is in his ninth season at Russellville. “We had foul trouble, adversity, but I’m proud of our guys for sticking their nose to the grindstone and finding ways to finish the game. That’s what championships are all about.”

The Golden Tigers went straight to work in the first period of play. Russellville dropped 26 points on the Red Devils in the opening eight minutes, nine points coming from three-pointers by senior KJ Murray and seven points from Duncan.

Russellville continued to outpace Lawrence County in the second period, though the buckets did not fall nearly as often for either team. Russellville’s Gavin Hyde, who hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer to end the first period, tipped in a rebound at the horn to give Russellville the edge in the quarter and a 38-25 lead at the break.

After halftime, Russellville looked like a threat to run away with it. The Golden Tigers scored just seven points from the field but Lawrence County sent Russellville to the line six times in the third quarter. The Golden Tigers took advantage, sinking 10 of their 12 free throw attempts, and with just over a minute left in the quarter established a 22-point lead, their largest of the game.

Despite a seemingly comfortable cushion for the home team, a bevy of turnovers and fouls, especially technical fouls, allowed Lawrence County to cut the deficit to 14 points by the end of the third and down to nine points with 2:30 left in the game. 

“We get a technical foul and all of a sudden it turns into like a seven-point play that kind of changes the nature of the game,” said Odom. “We had two guys that are usually on the floor out of the game because of (technical fouls) so it was a crazy deal.”

“It was kind of a crazy game, but that’s just how it is when us and Lawrence County play,” he added. 

In the end the Red Devils’ comeback attempt was too little, too late. A few more Golden Tiger baskets were enough to seal the 77-66 victory and Russellville’s seventh area title in the last nine seasons.

With the win Russellville earned the right to play host in its AHSAA sub-regional game. Going into the state playoffs there will be no easy games, but the privilege of hosting the opening round is a boost, Odom said.

“We get to play the playoff game at home and that’s the perfect scenario,” he said. “By this point everyone is good so we’re going to have to play really well, but to play it here–we play well here–we’ve got a chance.”

And Odom was right: His team did have a chance, took it and defeated Wenonah 79-63 Saturday night to advance to the AHSAA Northwest Regional in Hanceville.

In a game that never downshifted to anything slower than breakneck pace, Russellville and Wenonah raced one another up and down the court and fought it close for three quarters. Although the game’s opening points belonged to the Dragons, from there the hosts never trailed. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter, however, before the Golden Tigers finally pulled away with it, eventually leading by as much as 18 in the final couple minutes.

“(Wenonah) brought in a very athletic, great basketball team,” said Odom. “I knew it was going to be played like that. We’re not going to back down from anybody.”

Total turnovers competed with total field goals in a breathless first period, which Russellville edged out 16-14, thanks in part to nine points from Malachi Duncan, who finished the game with 18.

In the second period–-if the tempo was any slower it was negligible—both teams’ shots started to fall and each cut down on its turnovers. The Golden Tigers, led by seven points from EJ King, outscored the Dragons 26-20 in the second to take a 42-34 lead into the locker room.

Trailing at the start of the second half, the Dragons didn’t lie down. BJ Billings dropped 11 of Wenonah’s 20 points in the third as the visitors went on a run and outscored Russellville 20-14. This trimmed the Golden Tigers’ lead to 56-54 going into the final eight minutes.

“We had pushed it out a little bit in the third and credit (Wenonah): I think they hit three threes in about a 90 second period of time that brought the game back,” said Odom.

The game wasn’t back on for much longer, though. Russellville ruled the final period of play, going on a tear that increased its advantage to 16 points with just under 3:00 left.

“You love the eight minutes when it was winning time, I thought our guys made all the winning plays,” Odom said. “I don’t know the numbers but we dominated the fourth quarter. That’s how you win playoff games, that’s how you win championships.”

Wenonah turnovers and Russellville’s baskets on the fast-break slayed the Dragons, the deepest piercing daggers coming from corner threes right in front of the Golden Tiger bench.

“The way we share the ball, the way we find the open guy, we’ve got those shots open,” Odom said. “As a team I thought we shot so much better in the second (half).”

Russellville’s King, who had 10 points in the fourth, finished with a game-high 27 points.

Up next the Golden Tigers will travel to Tom Drake Coliseum in Hanceville where they will face Ramsay in the first round of the northwest regional.

“We were there last year so our guys had that experience,” Odom said. “Now it’s about finding a way to recoup. It’s going to be another fight.”

“The 5A bracket in the northwest region is unbelievable with the amount of good basketball teams. Everybody’s got a chance. You just have to compete at a high level,” he added.

Russellville and Ramsay are scheduled to play on Friday, Feb. 16.