While the cause probably didn’t look completely hopeless after the third quarter, it likely bordered on it.
The Winder-Barrow High School boys basketball team trailed visiting Madison County 54-38 after the third quarter as a 3-point shooting onslaught by the Red Raiders.
However, the Bulldoggs never gave in and rallied for a 66-63 win to stun Madison County who appeared on the road to victory.
“We had a lot of people contribute down the stretch,” said WBHS coach David Sokol. “Whether it was a rebound or a good pass, we made the plays happen. Jamias Davis did a good job executing the offense and Kendall Isler went to the basketball well. Qua Flanigan also helped us with his 3-point shooting.”
Trailing 63-62 with 30 seconds left, the Bulldoggs forced a turnover and then took the lead on a layup by Isler. Madison County called time but BJ Worley stole in the inbounds pass and was fouled. He missed his free throws, however, but the Red Raiders committed another turnover and Flanigan added a layup for a three-point lead.
The game was close throughout the first half as Madison County held a slim 29-28 lead at the break. However, the third quarter belonged to the Red Raiders as they outscored WBHS 25-10.
It wasn’t until a 3-pointer by Worley with 5:41 left that the Bulldoggs pulled to within 12 points at 56-44. Isler had a strong fourth quarter, scoring 12 of 15 points in the final eight minutes.
Madison County simply tried to hold on down the stretch but WBHS finally took the lead with 30 seconds left.
Madison County’s Stan Maxwell fouled out of the contest with just over two minutes left and his absence from the court made a difference for his team. Maxwell finished with 24 points, 18 of which came in the first half.
“I can’t explain getting down by so much,” Sokol said. “We’ve played well lately but overall the season hasn’t gone as we would have liked. We have to have a strong effort the whole time. We expected this game to be close.”
The win pushed the Bulldoggs to 6-10 overall but more importanly 2-0 in Region 8-AAAA North. WBHS will host Flowery Branch Friday at 7:30 p.m.
