by Michael DeVuyst
Blountstown Basketball claims Class A District 3 Championship. NEXT GAME: Will host Franklin Co. on Thursday the 16th at 7:00 CT to open the State Playoffs.
Blountstown High School Basketball finished the regular season on a five-game winning streak and entered the Class A District 3 tournament as the number 3 seed with a 17-7 record. The tournament was hosted by Grand Ridge with Sneads as the number 1 seed. Cottondale, Bozeman, Graceville, Malone and Liberty County rounded out the tournament. On Tuesday the 7th the Tigers opened the tournament with the 6th seed Malone Tigers. Blountstown jumped out to a big 37-16 first half lead and cruised to a 63-42 win. Aidan Richards led Blountstown with 19 points hitting 4 of 9 from 3-point range. Richards added 6 rebounds. Taiveon Crumitie added 16 points with 4 rebounds and Artavius Jones chipped in 12 points with 7 boards. Point Guard Amarion Hover finished with a game high 8 rebounds and 6 assists.
The Tigers advanced to Wednesday’s game to play Cottondale, the number 2 seed who beat Liberty County 55-16 the night before. The game was a defensive battle with the Tigers taking a 16-7 lead into the half. The Tigers went on to overpower Cottondale in the second half winning 38-19. Aidan Richards pumped in 15 points going 3-6 from 3-point land and added 7 rebounds. Artavius Jones chipped in 10 points and a game high 12 rebounds. Amarion Hover led the point with 4 assists and 6 rebounds.
Blountstown advanced to the championship game on Friday the 10th to play the #4 seed Bozeman Bucks after the Bucks upset #1 Sneads in overtime 57-48 on Wednesday. The Tigers took the quick 2-0 lead but ended up trailing the rest of the first half and went into the locker room down 26-20. The Bucks lead would climb to 9 points to start the 4th period but the Tigers inched back to tie the game at 47 with an Ashton Mosley drive and lay in and then take the lead at 49-47 on the inbounds with a Taiveon Crumitie steal and layup with about 5 minutes to go in the game. The two teams traded a couple of baskets the rest of the way with Bozeman getting a layup to tie the game at 52 with :30 seconds to play in regulation. A last second shot by the Tigers did not fall and the game went into overtime. In overtime, both teams went back and forth with the Tigers taking the one-point lead with a minute left on an Ashton Mosely steal and lay in. Bozeman answered with a layup of their own to take the one-point lead with :40 seconds to play. Mosley gave the Tigers the 62-61 lead again with a quick score with a floater in the lane that was kissed off the glass. The Tiger defense got a stop with :08 seconds to go but a missed free throw that would give the Bucks a last chance with :04 seconds to go. Aidan Richards stole the inbounds pass and the Tigers escaped with the 62-61 victory.
Ashton Mosely had a game high 20 points with 5 rebounds. Aidan Richards added 18 points and 7 rebounds. Artavius Jones chipped in 10 points with 6 boards. Amarion Hover ran the point with 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 points.
The Blountstown win guaranteed them a spot in the Class A state playoffs and will be the #2 seed in the Region 3 tournament. The Tigers will play host to the #3 Franklin County Seahawks on Thursday, February 16th. The teams split their regular season matches with each team winning on their home court. Game time this Thursday will be 7:00 PM CT in Blountstown.
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