By David Miller
Special to The Dispatch
Columbus High scored just five points in the fourth quarter and committed nine turnovers, but 21 points from Robert Woodard was enough to lift the Falcons over the New Hope Trojans in the nightcap of the New Hope Classic Saturday night.
Columbus’ final turnover of the game nearly proved to be fatal as Columbus was called for a loose-ball foul after a missed free throw with just two seconds left. Down two, Toddy Jennings stepped to the free throw line. He sank the first but missed the second, washing away the Trojans’ attempt to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Columbus’ 68-67 win moved the Falcons to 9-4 ahead of Monday’s home clash against Starkville.
“I thought Terryonte (Thomas) was the guy who got fouled, but they put Toddy (Jennings) on the line,” said Drew McBrayer, New Hope coach. “We were fine either way, though, it didn’t work out. A tremendous effort from our guys to fight back the way they did.”
Columbus opened up an eight-point lead, 47-39, early in the third quarter but watched the Trojans chip away at the lead behind 3-pointers from Carlos Brooks.
Both offenses struggled in the fourth, though Columbus’ youth started to show with untimely travels and offensive fouls that helped New Hope creep to within two when Thomas followed his own shot for an old-fashioned 3-point play.
Down the stretch, the teams traded turnovers before Jay Shinn lost his handle on the baseline on what would have been the tying shot attempt with two seconds left, the play preceded Columbus’ missed FT and Jennings’ missed free throw for the tie.
“This team, we’re still trying to adjust,” said Luther Riley, Columbus coach. “We played some young guys, made some mistakes. Young guys have to learn different game situations.
“We didn’t do a good job in what we call ‘winning time’ – those last two or three minutes, where we were up seven or eight and should have expanded the lead. But we didn’t get stops though. We turned the ball over and made some mistakes.”
Columbus also struggled at the line, going 10 of 22 in the game. But Woodard’s impact was enough to lift the Falcons, as he hit four 3-pointers and recorded four blocks.
“On Robert, from Day 1 to now, he’s just been a joy to coach,” Riley said. “He listens. He does everything you ask him to do. He’s like a sponge, and he comes to play every night. That’s what I love about him. I just hate to see him in two more years.
“He played 32 minutes, so I can live with the few mistakes he made tonight.”
New Hope was led by Thomas, who scored 14 points. The junior hit just two field goals and scored 10 from the free throw line.
“Even though his shot didn’t fall, he’s still gonna find a way to get involved and do the right things,” McBrayer said. “He gets to the rim in second half, and he’s more than just a shooter. He fought hard tonight.”
Cameron Douglas had 16 fand Javante McDavid had 12 for Columbus. Willie Ousley added 14 and Jennings had 10, eight of which came at the line, for New Hope.
Columbus girls 60, New Hope 38: Zaria Jenkins scored 21 points to lead the Lady Falcons.
New Hope tied the game at 10 midway through the first quarter, but the Lady Falcons closed the quarter on an 8-2 run. Columbus led by as many as 13 in the third quarter, a quarter in which Jenkins had four steals and Jasmine Johnson had three. The Lady Falcons rode a strong defensive effort and recorded nine steals and two blocks in the quarter, powering the team to a 43-28 lead that ballooned to a 60-38 advantage.
New Hope fell to 4-6 on the season.
Janea Topps had 12 and Alaysha Jennings had eight for New Hope. Rayla Rogers added 14 for Columbus (8-4).
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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