By Brian Grantham
The Stringer Red Devils were down 18 points early in the game with Leake County Tuesday night only to come up a little short in their comeback bid.
Reece Barber, who led the Devils in scoring for the first time all season, led a charge that fell just short.
Barber finished with a team-high 17 points, and the Stringer Red Devils fell to Leake County by a score of 65-64 at the “Devils Den.”
“Barber is fearless, and never gives up. He has a motor that won’t stop,” said Leake County head coach Chris Bloodsaw.
The Devils fell behind 20-9 in the first quarter as the Gators scored 14 points in the paint in the opening quarter. The Gators got an 18-point cushion midway through the second period by a 31-13 advantage. Missed free throws by Leake County and a 3-pointer from Griffin Cheatham kept the Devils hanging around 37-24 at the half.
Three straight missed layups early in the third quarter plus a technical foul on Anthony Thomas, along with some sharp shooting from Leake County, Stringer found themselves down 16 points. The Red Devils trailed 52-39 going to the fourth quarter.
A Barber layup sliced the Gators lead to eight, 54-46. Haden Boyd followed with a 3-point basket to pull the Devils to within five with 29 seconds left and a Keyshawn Dease layup cut the lead to 64-61 with 14 left. A late free throw from the Gators and a meaningless 3-pointer from Cheatham at the buzzer weren’t enough as the Gators escaped by one point.
Boyd and Dease had 13 points each, and Cheatham chipped in 10 as Stringer fell to 14-7, and 1-2 in division play.
Jamie Weathers had 19 points, and Jamicahael Banks had 18 for the Gators.
“We are not where we need to be, but we have to learn from our mistakes,” said Barber.
“We started slow, and in the second half we showed heart down 18, but these kids play hard,” said Stringer head coach Brandon Jennings.
Girls game
The Stringer Lady Red Devils stayed close for the most part, but fell to Leake County 57-45 Tuesday night at the “Devils Den.”
Leake County took a 16-12 first quarter lead and a 29-21 halftime advantage. Abby McNeil and Madison Rayner led a charge in the third quarter as the Lady Devils sliced the Lady Gators lead down to five, 34-29. The Lady Gators went back up 41-29 as the Lady Devils had ten turnovers in the third quarter. The Lady Gators led 43-32 heading into the final quarter. The Gators had a 13 point cushion midway through the fourth quarter and coasted to the 12 point victory.
Mcneil and Rayner finished with 15 points each, and Katelyn Green had 12. Ottshae Burrage finished with 24 points for the Gators while Demekia Odom had 14.
