Two coaches took different approaches in an attempt to find the same ingredient Tuesday night.
In the first game, Starkville Academy girls basketball coach Glenn Schmidt opted not to raise her voice when she talked to her team after Heritage Academy built an 11-point halftime lead. Instead, Schmidt decided to do something atypical — she sat down. She then laid out her plan of attack.
In the nightcap, Starkville Academy boys basketball coach Bruce Allsup invoked a higher power in a spirited halftime speech after he watched Heritage Academy outhustle his team and take a 10-point advantage into intermission.
The different approaches delivered the same result.
The Starkville Academy girls turned up the intensity on defense and outscored Heritage Academy 28-8 in the second half en route to a 42-33 victory, while the Starkville Academy boys answered Allsup’s challenge in the final 16 minutes to earn a 63-55 victory in a Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AAA, District 2 doubleheader in Columbus.
“I challenged their manhood,” Allsup said. “I thought Heritage was faster in every phase of the game it and showed. We just didn’t have any energy or get-up-and-go as far as running our defense or offense. We just had a ‘Come to Jesus’ meeting at halftime. If we were going to lose this game, we were going to lose because we at least gave it 100 percent. I think we gave about 115 percent in the second half.”
Allsup said he asked his players at halftime if they wanted to be part of a championship team or a “so-so team” like Starkville Academy has been for the last several years. He said he was gratified the Volunteers accepted his challenge after a first half in which they didn’t have their best stuff. He said there have been times this season he has had to challenge the players, but he said they learned a valuable lesson Tuesday in that when they aren’t playing well they always have to play with effort.
Heritage Academy coach Gary Harris loved the spirit and fight his players showed in the first half. The Patriots had six players score in the first quarter and used a balanced attack to build their largest lead, 30-15, on a basket by Camden Sanders (12 points) in the lane. A 3-pointer by Caleb Gurley (12 points) with 26.4 seconds remaining in the second quarter kept the Patriots’ cushion at 13, but Reid Stevens (nine points) drained a trey with 12.2 seconds left to cut the deficit to 35-25 at halftime.
Starkville Academy (16-5, 4-0 district) took the lead for good, 39-37, on a runner by Carter Roach (seven points, five assists, four steals) with 3 minutes, 38 seconds left in the third quarter. The lead grew to as many as seven before a drive by Dalton Ford in the quarter’s waning seconds cut the margin to 46-45 and appeared to give the Patriots momentum. But Roach raced down the court for a reverse layup with 4.7 seconds left that erased any edge Heritage Academy hoped to carry into the final eight minutes.
Heritage Academy stayed within one possession for most of the first three-and-a-half minutes of the final period. A three-point play by Luke Templeton (12 points) off an assist from Codie Futral (11 points, nine rebounds, five assists) helped the Volunteers extend the lead to 57-51. They hit 4 of 8 free throws in the final 1:27 to seal the deal.
“We played so well in the first half,” Harris said. “We fought and scrapped. We were faster than them. We were quicker than them. Everything we did was better than them in the first half. In the second half, we talked about finishing. We didn’t finish at their place (in a 47-46 loss), and we harped on that. Quite frankly, they were tougher and physically stronger (in the second half). I don’t know if it is coached — and it is a credit to them if it is. I don’t know if it is something inside those kids. This is a rivalry between our schools, and in the second half they were stronger, faster, quicker, more determined.”
Harris said Ade Amusa (21 points, 11 rebounds, five steals, three assists) took over the game in the second half. Amusa had nine points in the final 16 minutes, but he and the Volunteers apparently were everywhere, beating the Patriots on the offensive glass and to loose balls. They also were more active on defense thanks to a half-court trap and constant prodding from Allsup, who encouraged his players to remain in the passing lanes and to play with more intensity.
“I think we whipped them in every phase of the game in the second half,” Allsup said.
Josh Neal added 11 points and John Isaac Stafford had 10 for Heritage Academy (13-4, 1-2).
In the girls game, Schmidt faced another simple dilemma after watching the Lady Volunteers struggle from the field and not play with a lot of energy on defense. She said she didn’t get upset at halftime and encouraged her players to get their minds off their missed shots and to focus on their game. A 19-4 third quarter turned the tide and featured six points by Bonner Hughes (nine points, seven rebounds). Hannah Cuevas (eight points, 11 rebounds) and Kacey Faver (eight points) added to a balanced effort in the second half that helped the Lady Volunteers earn a 48-29 rebounding edge that offset an 0-for-11 showing from 3-point range.
“We scored 19 points in the third quarter, but our defense scored some of those points,” Schmidt said. “We extended our defense from a man-to-man into a semi full-court press and we picked up some easy shots from that, which kind of got us going.”
Lauren Pole led the Heritage Academy girls with 12 points. She didn’t score in the second half. Nicole Dishongh added eight points, while Allie Kerby had six.
Sarah Pellum had six points and nine rebounds, Sydney Passons had six points and six rebounds, and Adrienne Futral had five steals for the Starkville Academy girls, who overcame a 14-of-68 shooting night (20 percent) from the field.
Starkville Academy will play host to Pillow Academy on Thursday and Winston Academy on Friday. Heritage Academy will play Friday at Leake Academy.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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