SAND ROCK – The Sand Rock Wildcats are back in basketball’s Sweet 16, but the Section Lions made them work to get there.
It took until midway through the third quarter for Sand Rock to get some separation, and the fourth-ranked Wildcats held on in the fourth to earn a 71-64 Class 2A subregional victory.
“The thing about this team that I heard and what we witnessed tonight is Section never gives up,” Sand Rock coach John Blackwell said. “They battle you to the very end and they really work hard to make you earn it. That’s what they did tonight. They made us earn it.”
Section (19-13) led 17-16 at the end of the first quarter, and Sand Rock (23-5) took a 33-32 lead at the halftime break. The Wildcats outscored Section 18-11 in the third to take a 51-43 edge heading into the fourth quarter.
“In the second half, I thought our coaches made some good adjustments and the players, everything we ask them to do they do,” Blackwell said. “We were able to make a few little adjustments at halftime. I think those adjustments helped us out. The third quarter was the difference. The things we talked about at halftime, the guys did a good job of making them happen.”
Garyn Sharpe led four Wildcat players in double figures with 18 points, including a 6-for-6 performance from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter. He also connected on a pair of 3-pointers and had six assists and five rebounds.
Jacob St. Clair sank four treys and scored 17 points. Kaden Justice came away with a pair of treys and had 16 points to go along with 10 rebounds. Xander Bradley posted 12 points, four boards and four blocks. Cade Ballenger finished with eight points, six assists and four rebounds.
Blackwell credited his non-starters for helping get Sand Rock prepared for Wednesday’s battle with the Lions.
“When you talk about everybody stepped up, it’s not just the five or six that play. That’s what the fans see. What they don’t see is that 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 guy every day at practice push us to be better,” Blackwell said. “We’ve got guys who we moved up at the end of the year, like Ace Ashley, Logan Crider, Zach Clanton, Bradley Jackson and Bryan East. They imitate who we play. They push us to do the right things.”
Logan Patterson posted 20 points to lead the Lions. Jacob Cooper and Alex Guinn both scored 14 points. Gabriel Hilley had three treys for nine points. Dominik Blair finished with five points.
Sand Rock will now travel to Westminster of Oak Mountain on Friday at 6:30 p.m., with a ticket to Jacksonville State University’s Pete Mathews Coliseum on the line.
“We talked last year about we weren’t satisfied with getting to the Sweet 16,” Blackwell said. “We’ve got a chance to go further. Hopefully that’s what we’ll do. We’ll take care of business and take another step. That’s our goal, to take another step. “
