Blue Tornado Use Fast Start As Springboard For 85-67 Win
by John Hunt
posted November 17, 2009
Perhaps the best thing about Hall of Fame basketball games is the fact that coaches get to see just how much progress their kids have made since practice began a few weeks ago.
They also get to see where the most work is needed without being charged with a loss.
That was certainly the case at Tyner Tuesday night for McCallie’s Dan Wadley and Tyner’s Gerald Harris.
Both saw many positives for a couple of teams who have the potential to be pretty good before all is said and done.
McCallie went home with the 85-67 win in a game that was basically decided in the first quarter.
The Blue Tornado scored nine of the first 10 points in the early going. The lead had stretched to 25-9 when the horn sounded to end that first stanza.
Tyner basically had to play from behind the rest of the game.
While the Rams were competitive and looked at times like they might get back in it, McCallie hit some key buckets in the late stages to prevent any kind of comeback the Rams had in mind.
McCallie’s lead was 40-25 at intermission and 55-41 after three quarters.
Big Mike Bradley cut the McCallie lead to a dozen with two free throws to start the final stanza, but Chad Lee, a 6-5 junior, got hot from long distance and the comeback idea was erased in a hurry.
Lee, who led all scorers with 25 points, scored 16 in that frantic fourth period, including three 3s in the first minute.
Tyner’s Reggie Gilmore connected on a short bank shot to interrupt Lee’s streak, but the Blue Tornado sharp-shooter scored on a putback and added a dunk less than a minute later as McCallie’s lead was 70-47 with 5:40 to play.
The rest of the way was basically a free throw contest as both teams were in the double bonus late in the game.
“Tyner’s speed gave us some problems at times, but our young kids didn’t fold,” said Wadley at the conclusion of the game.
“It seemed like we hit everything we threw up in the first quarter and then Chad got hot in the fourth, but I’m very happy with our effort.
“We had fumble fingers at times, but we know one speed and that’s to run the whole time. We know that we’ll have turnovers as a result, but we also know that we’ll get more used to it as the season progresses.
“Our guys off the bench also gave us some good quality minutes, so overall I’m happy,” Wadley added.
Tyner’s Harris had a smile on his face at the end, despite the defeat.
“We all knew it had the potential to be a great game and it was, but we got caught up in the moment and didn’t play well at the beginning.
“We started off slow as we had a lot of nervousness, but this showed us just where we are and what we need to work on," Harris said later.
"We weren’t patient on offense. We have to make better decisions as we took some bad shots, but we never quit. It could have been a whole lot worse.
“We have a lot of seniors on our team and we have a lot of expectations, but our hat’s off to McCallie. They are a young team, but they have some great athletes. They shot the lights out at the start,” the Tyner coach added.
While Lee led both teams with 25 points, teammate Cordell James was also in double figures with 12 points.
Jordan Price followed with nine while Matt Harris and Jay Meacham both finished with eight points.
Thomas Cooper scored 21 points to lead Tyner while Gilmore and Damien Suttles followed with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Tyner’s Bradley, who recently committed to UConn, never really got untracked and finished with just four points.
McCallie won the rebound battle by a 25-20 margin with Henry Self and Paden Gaines grabbing five apiece. Bradley had six boards for the Rams while Cooper snagged five.
GPS 81, Tyner girls 46: The GPS Bruisers were explosive in the first and third quarters as they cruised to the 35-point victory.
GPS had a 26-7 advantage in the first eight minutes while a 28-9 difference in the third quarter extended a 36-25 halftime lead and the Lady Rams never got any closer.
Simone Busby scored 18 points to lead four GPS players in double figures.
Chadarryl Clay and Maryanna Caldwell both followed with 17 while Jenae Perry was next with 15 points.
Britteny McKinney scored 20 points to lead Tyner while Mercedes Shropshire was next with 12.
GIRLS SUMMARY
GPS 26 10 28 17 -- 81
Tyner 7 18 9 12 -- 46
GPS (81) – Lewis, Chadarryl Clay 17, Maryanna Caldwell 17, Poindexter 1, Fernandez 4, Bandy, Knarr 4, Kemp 4, Simone Busby 18, Sharrock 1, Jenae Perry 15.
TYNER (46) – Sturkey 3, Smith, Ashford, Mercedes Shropshire 12, Wilson, Bonds, Tanksley, Stevens 7, Morgan 4, Britteny McKinney 20, Montgomery, Spieght, Hines.
3-POINT GOALS: GPS 3 (Clay, Caldwell 2); Tyner 1 (McKinney).
BOYS SUMMARY
McCallie 25 15 15 30 -- 85
Tyner 9 16 16 26 -- 67
McCALLIE (85) – Harris 8, Hicks 6, Chad Lee 25, O’Donohue 7, Self 6, Price 9, Cordell James 12, Meacham 8, Gaines 4.
TYNER (67) – Jones 9, Rawls 6, Thomas Cooper 21, Reggie Gilmore 14, Bradley 4, Damien Suttles 13, Fletcher, Murphy.
3-POINT GOALS: McCallie 9 (Hicks, Lee 5, O’Donohue, Price, James); Tyner 4 (Cooper, Suttles 3).
(Email John Hunt at tnmoose2002@aol.com)
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