The Apalachee High School boys basketball team fell by 11 points Tuesday night to visiting Clarke Central but that final margin of victory for the Gladiators was not a true indicator of how the game went.
The host Wildcats battled until the final buzzer and held a 10-point lead well into the second quarter. For coach Kevin Morris a season of struggle was made a little easier with how his team played.
“Two big runs by Clarke Central was the differenc,” the coach said. “We played so well for so many minutes. The final score says we lost by 11 but that was a five-point game really.”
The game was not decided until Clarke Central made 6-of-6 free throws in the final minute. AHS had to commit several fouls in order to get the Gladiators to the free throw line as the team only had been called for three until the final minutes of the contest.
“We did a good job of fouling late,” Morris said. “But after they missed their first 1-and-1 attempt, they made the rest. We were down by five points and just missed a 3-pointer which would have made it really close.
We’ve made a great deal of progress this year. We showed promise tonight. The thing about this group is they will come out tomorrow and work hard in practice as we look to continue to improve.”
The Wildcat coach has praised his team’s approach this season, always showing up ready to work at practice and focusing on getting better each game.
Stanley Williams led a balanced scoring attack for the Wildcats with nine followed by Rakim Peters and Cameron Blakeley with eight each. Tyler Davis added four points while Qua Cleveland and Jonah German both finished with three.
Clarke Central held a slim 23-22 lead at halftime after a 13-2 run in the final three minutes of the first half. The Gladiators had moved their lead to six points after the third quarter.
“Even when they went on their runs, our effort stayed the same,” Morris said. “We are a lot better team now than in November.”
The coach said Williams had a quality performance helping lead a strong defensive effort.
