Greene Central at Aycock - Turning it around

By Rob Craig
Published in Sports on December 21, 2006 1:47 PM

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PIKEVILLE -- A month ago, the Charles B. Aycock girl's basketball team had dropped seven straight games to open the season. They were a team playing without any confidence.

The Golden Falcons team that took the floor Wednesday night had the same faces as the team did four weeks ago, but their attitude and record has drastically improved.

Aycock picked up its fifth win in its last six games, defeating Greene Central 48-45 -- avenging an earlier loss this season to the Rams.

"We had a bad taste in our mouths the last time we played them," said Aycock first-year coach Carrie Reynell. "We knew it would be a different game tonight."

The difference could be seen in virtually every aspect of the Golden Falcons game. Passes were on target. Turnovers were limited. Shots were made.

"Things change after you get a couple of wins," said Reynell. "They're doing some of the things we told them would work and, once they see it works, it translates over."

Jazzmine Lee put together another strong evening with 23 points and six rebounds while directing the Aycock offense.

"(Jazzmine's) finally found her little niche," said Reynell. "She's not trying to do too much. She's had the presence of mind to step over and ask what she needed to do. She's come a long way."

Chantel Gaines added eight points and nine rebounds for the Falcons, who improved their record to 5-8.

Greene Central (4-6) was led by Briana Stanton's 24 points and Shanice Pettaway's 14.

The Golden Falcons led from the start and built a 28-20 halftime lead thanks in part to Lee's buzzer-beating three-point baskets to end the first and second quarters.

In the third quarter, Greene Central closed the gap to 35-31 following a rebound and jumper from Stanton.

Aycock then got a burst of energy from their two tallest players, 6-foot-2 Lauren Pratt and 5-foot-11 Bridgette Briggs.

Pratt and Briggs both forced the Rams offense out of the paint, while on the other end, providing some big rebounds and baskets.

A rebound and putback by Pratt capped a 9-2 run that gave the Golden Falcons their largest lead of the night at 44-33 with 20 seconds to play in the quarter.

"(Our size) is one advantage we have that I wish we would use a little more," said Reynell of the Pratt-Briggs duo that combined for 12 points and nine rebounds.

The fourth quarter, however, nearly turned ugly for the Golden Falcons.

Aycock wouldn't score a point until Lee's layup with 4:22 to play and scored just once more the rest of the game.

The Rams took advantage, cutting the lead to three with 15 seconds to play following back-to-back misses on the front ends of a one-and-one by Yolanda Pitt.

The Golden Falcons were able to survive by dribbling out the remaining seconds until time expired.

"We lost our mental focus," said Reynell. "I think the more we get into these situations that it'll make us even stronger when we get into conference play."

In the finale of the evening, the C.B. Aycock boys ran into a buzzsaw from Greene Central, falling behind 38-8 at halftime before eventually losing 59-31.

The loss keeps the Golden Falcons winless on the season, dropping their record to 0-13.

"We have to limit our turnovers and stop giving teams so many second- and third-chance points," said Aycock coach David West whose team committed 31 turnovers on the night. "So if we can limit those two things we can compete, but until we do we won't."

Jordan Riley led Aycock with six points while Michael King added four.

Chavalier Howell scored a game-high 16 points for the Rams (6-4) while Albert Barron added 12.

The Greene Central offense took a while to get warmed up, but once it did, the Golden Falcons could do little to slow it down.

After tying the game at 4-4 with 3:48 to play in the first quarter, the Rams would outscore Aycock 34-4 for the rest of the half.

Despite trailing by 34 at halftime, West said his team never stopped playing hard.

"The boys won't quit," he said. "We may make some bonehead decisions, but you can never say these guys quit or didn't hustle. This team is full of character."

It was that hustle that enabled the Aycock defense to hold the potent Greene Central offense to 21 points and force 17 turnovers in the second half.

For the Golden Falcons, it was the lone moral victory they could take away from the evening.

"We'd love to win a game, but at the same time, these guys are learning the game and each other," said West. "These kids are giving everything they've got."

Girls Game

Greene Central 11 9 14 11 -- 45

C.B. Aycock 11 17 16 4 -- 48

GREENE CENTRAL (4-6)

Briana Stanton 10 0 4-7 24, Shanice Pettaway 5 0 4-9 14, Shanon Daniels 2 0 0-2 4, Cassandra Suggs 1 0 0-0 2, Jocelyn Connor 0 0 1-2 1. TOTALS -- 18 0 9-20 45.

C.B. AYCOCK (5-8)

Jazzmine Lee 5 2 7-8 23, Chantel Gaines 4 0 0-0 8, Lauren Pratt 3 0 1-2 7, Bridgette Briggs 2 0 1-3 5, Rusti Talton 1 0 0-0 2, Erin Medford 1 0 0-0 2, Jasmine Dobbin 0 0 1-2 1, Yolanda Pitt 0 0 0-3 0. TOTALS -- 16 2 10-18 48.

Boys Game

Greene Central 18 20 10 11 -- 59

C.B. Aycock 4 4 8 15 -- 31

GREENE CENTRAL (6-4)

Chavalier Howell 5 2 0-0 16, Albert Barron 5 0 2-2 12, Danny Maye 4 0 1-2 9, Brandon Sutton 1 0 4-6 6, Reggie Johnson 2 0 0-0 4, Eddarious Jones 1 0 1-2 3, Willie Briggs 0 1 0-0 3, Marcus Thomas 0 1 0-0 3, Marcus Lee 1 0 0-0 2, James Smith 0 0 1-2 1. TOTALS -- 19 4 9-13 59.

C.B. AYCOCK (0-13)

Jordan Riley 1 0 4-4 6, Michael King 1 0 2-3 4, David Gurganus 0 1 0-0 3, Alex Peacock 0 1 0-0 3, Devon Newsome 0 1 0-0 3, Quantay Poole 1 0 0-0 2, Leonard Compton 1 0 0-0 2, Nick Weaver 1 0 0-0 2, Jonathan Williams 1 0 0-0 2, Evan Medford 1 0 0-0 2, Kendre Reid 0 0 1-4 1, Jordan Yawn 0 0 1-2 1. TOTALS -- 7 3 8-13 31.