Tigers clamp down on Hatch, win Christmas tourney
Demopolis (6-5) won its Christmas Tournament Friday with a 65-57 victory over R.C. Hatch, closing the game out with a dominant defensive effort in the fourth quarter.
The Tigers allowed only four Jessie Goldsby free throws in the fourth quarter as it put together a 10-4 run to close out the game.
“It fells good to win your own tournament,” Demopolis coach Rodney Jackson said of the win.
The Tigers allowed the Bobcats to score only 20 points after halftime to overcome a 37-36 intermission deficit.
“I felt like (Jessie Goldsby and Bakauri Jackson) are fine ball players. I got in a 2-3 because they were not on,” Jackson said. “I pressed just enough to get a couple steals where we were okay.”
Kiante Jeffries, the eventual Tournament MVP, had 25 points, three rebounds and three assists in the contest. One night after he got minimal help from his teammates in a double-overtime win, Jeffries saw Roderick Davis play the role of lieutenant with 16 points, seven rebounds, four steals and four assists.
“He was very big,” Jackson said of Davis. Through 31 minutes of play Thursday, Davis had zero points. In the final minute and through two overtimes, he chipped in eight to help Demopolis to a first-round win before staying hot for all 32 minutes in Friday’s game.
“All of that started stared on D.J. Howell jumping out of bounds, throwing it in and him hitting the three,” Jackson said of a late-game play from Thursday’s action that ignited Davis to an All-Tournament performance.
Demopolis controlled the glass in the contest, out-rebounding Hatch 37-24. The Tigers saw senior Demetrius Kemp snag 11 boards and score eight points to help limit Hatch’s second-chance opportunities.
“The goes up, he goes and gets it,” Jackson said of Kemp. “He had a great game again. He had seven deflections. His hands are on everything.”
Jeffries totaled 59 points to lead all scorers in the tournament, run his season average to 19.9 and stretch his streak of 20-plus point games to four.
“One thing I’ve been telling Kiante is to be positive,” Jackson said. “I’ve seen more of that in him. He had two outstanding nights.”
Bakauri Jackson had 21 points, seven rebounds, five assists and steals to lead R.C. Hatch and earn a spot on the All-Tournament team. Goldsby finished with 16 points for Hatch.
Other All-Tournament selections include Michael Moore of John Essex and Imoras Agee of Linden.
The Tigers are scheduled to play again Thursday in Linden’s holiday tournament.