AUSTIN Thompson scored 16 points and Will Puckett added 15 in what Jefferson coach Bolling DuBose deemed a less-than-stellar 70-61 win over rival East Jackson Friday. Still, it’s one he’ll gladly take.
“I’ll take an ugly win on the road any time,” DuBose said.
Satchel Turpin added 10 points in the Dragon win.
Jefferson led 40-34 after a lively first half that featured nine three-pointers between the two squads.
The Dragons — who performed “erratically” in the first half, according to DuBose — built a nine-point edge after three quarters and led 62-52 at the 5:47 mark in the fourth following a two-hand slam from Tyler Patrick. Jefferson, however, never totally pulled away from the Eagles.
“I told (East Jackson coach) Brian (Turner) after the game (that) I thought they played harder than we did,” DuBose said. “I really did. I thought their kids played really hard all night and our kids didn’t. We played hard in spurts.”
Turner said his group turned the ball over too much and afforded Jefferson too many second-chance opportunities.
“We’ve got to box out,” he said. “We’ve got to box out a lot better than we did … We’re not a big, physical team.”
Jarron Davis led East Jackson with 13 points. His two three-pointers early on were part of a hot start for the Eagles, who led 13-5 five minutes into the game.
East Jackson, which maintained a 15-12 edge after a quarter, drilled five three-pointers in the first half but hit just one in the second half.
“I think we did some good things, and I thought our energy was good and I thought we played hard for the most part,” Turner said.
Jake Grindle added 12 points, 11 of which came in the second half.
