HUNTSVILLE-- North teams continued their success in All-Star Sports Week basketball competition here Thursday night at the University of Alabama-Huntsville’s Spragins Hall. Both boys and girls All-Star squads widened their series leads with victories.
The 2010 All-Star Sports Week and Coaching School closes out Friday with the 52nd playing of the annual North-South All-Star Football Classic. The 7 p.m. clash at Alabama A&M’s Crews Stadium will be broadcast live over the AHSAA Radio Network and can be accessed www.ahsaa.com.
North Girls Post 58-42 Victory
The North All-Stars limited the South to one point in the second quarter and went on to post a 58-42 victory in the 14th annual Girls All-Star basketball game.
The North improved its lead in the series to 12-2 with the win.
North MVP Sharin Rivers of Sparkman High School led all scorers with 16 points. She was 6-of-6 at the foul line and also sank two key 3-pointers to boost the North lead when the South closed the gap early in the second period. Rivers, a 5-foot-4 point guard, also had six steals and two assists in 21 minutes of playing time.
Teammate Amara Mayers of Madison Academy added eight points and Ashley Southern of Deshler had seven plus a team-high-tying seven rebounds. Brittany Agee of Bessemer City also had seven boards.
The North was red hot at the foul line, going 12-of-14 for the game and 9-of-11 in the second half.
The South fell behind 8-0 before guard Jatoria Carter of Jeff Davis used her super quickness and left hand to lead her team back into the contest. By the end of the first quarter the game was tied 10-10. Things fell apart quickly in the second quarter as the North outscored the South 16-1. The South did close to four, 32-28, in the second half, but Rivers took over again with some clutch free-throw shooting to seal her MVP performance.’
Carter finished with 13 points on a 5-of-17 shooting performance and had four steals. South MVP Shatavia Farris of Carver-Montgomery was strong inside as she collected a game-high nine rebounds, blocked five shots and scored 10 points on a 5-of-7 shooting effort. Monique Jackson of Central-Phenix City also had eight rebounds to help the South hold a 47-43 rebounding edge for the game.
Coaches for the North were Jana Killen of Deshler and Jim Brown of Briarwood Christian. South coaches were Charlie Shipp of Davidson and Eddie Jackson of Sumter County.
North Boys Complete Sweep With 86-81 Win
The North All-Stars used a strong 3-point shooting performance to overcome a disadvantage on the boards and in the paint and won the 67th Boys North-South Classic 86-81.
The North improved its lead in the series to 11-3 since All-Star Sports Week commenced in 1997. It was the eighth win in a row for the North, which holds a 42-25 edge in the overall series that began in 1953. The South’s last win (85-76) came in 2002 when the series was played at Auburn-Montgomery University.
The South won the rebounding battle Thursday night with a 10-board edge, 51-41, and outscored the North 52-32 in the lane. It was the North’s 11-of-28 3-point shooting that made up the difference. Spencer Palmer of Madison Academy was 3-of-5 from the 3-point arc, Collin Langley of Boaz, Luke Brackin of Hatton and Kyle Dennis of Bob Jones sank two each with Zach Owens of Faith Christian and T.J. Vines of Albertville had one each.
North MVP Jamar Pope of Sparkman did turn in a strong performance inside with 18 points–7-of-10 from the field–and six rebounds. Vestavia Hills’ 6-foot-4 William Truss led all rebounders with 14 and added eight points for the North. Langley finished with 13 points and Palmer 11.
For the South, MVP Kent Langham of Robertsdale scored 19 points, pulled down nine rebounds, had five steals and was 8-of-11 shooting on the night. Demario Butler of Baldwin County and Jacoby Payne of Opelika chipped in 13 points each. Malcolm Riley of Selma added 10.
Coaches for the North were Faron Key of Arab and Tommy Lewis of Piedmont. South coaches were Johnny Mitchell of Brantley and Mitch Joiner of Edward Bell.