Brewer gets past Hartselle in Big Blue
By By Todd Thompson, Hartselle Enquirer
FLORETTE - Brewer turned up the defensive intensity Monday night to beat rival Hartselle 59-51 in the third place game of the Big Blue Classic at Brewer High School.
The Patriots broke open a close game with a strong run in the second half to beat the Tigers in the first of three meetings between the two schools in the next two weeks.
Chris Dickerson scored a team-high 18 points for the Patriots, while Cody Lanford added 15 points. Kohl Sowder finished with 10 points for Brewer, who was without the services of second-leading scorer Houston Lanford.
Houston Lanford has staph infection in his left foot and is not expected to return to the Patriots’ lineup for at least two more weeks.
But even without Houston Lanford’s offensive production, the Patriots were able to pull away from Hartselle when the Tigers went cold in the second half.
Elkmont beat East Limestone in the final.
Brewer improved to 10-5 overall and the Patriots will get ready to face Hartselle again Friday on the road in a game that was originally scheduled for December. The girls’ varsity game will start at 2:30 p.m., with the varsity boys’ game to begin at 4 p.m.
And Brown would like to see the Patriots continue their strong play in the second half of the season.
Brewer held onto a slim 34-30 advantage in the third quarter before stretching the margin to nine points when Hartselle went 6:28 without a basket. The Tigers managed just a pair of free throws from Sam Fleischman during the stretch.
The Patriots caught fire in the fourth quarter as Chris Dickerson scored 13 second-half points to spark the run.
After trailing by one at the half, Cody Lanford hit a pair of 3-pointers in the first three minutes of the second half.
Cody Lanford added two free throws with two minutes left in the game to give the Patriots their largest lead at 53-40.
Tres Austin, who finished with 11 points for the Tigers, hit three 3-pointers to keep Hartselle (10-7) in the game.
Rodney Stansberry led Hartselle with 17 points after hitting six of his eight shots from the field.
Fleischman added 14 points after going 6-for-6 from the free throw line.
Elkmont 60, Hartselle 59
Elkmont overcame an 11-point halftime deficit to beat Hartselle in overtime Saturday in a winner’s bracket game.
Rodney Stansberry scored 23 points and pulled down seven rebounds in the loss. Tres Austin and Manquez Jones finished with 12 points each, while Sam Fleischman added 10 points and eight rebounds.
East Limestone 74, Brewer 68
Josh Vance led four players in double figures as Brewer came up short against East Limestone.
Vance hit six 3-pointers and finished with 24 points for the Patriots.
Brandon Murray finished with 15 points, while Chris Dickerson and Kohl Sowder scored 10 points each.
Hartselle 62, Decatur Heritage 60
Sam Fleischman scored on a short jumper with just five seconds left to send Hartselle to a 62-60 double overtime win over Decatur Heritage.
Rodney Stansberry led Hartselle with 19 points, while Fleischman finished with 14 points.
Manquez Jones added 13 points for the Tigers.
The game was tied 51-51 at the end of regulation and at 55-55 after the first overtime period.
Brewer 80, Lawrence County 48
Kyle Bowling scored 16 points and Kohl Sowder added 14 points as Brewer hammered Lawrence County.
Cody Lanford added 13 points for the Patriots, while Jordan Bowling and Brandon Murray finished with nine points each.
Josh Vance led the Patriots with 10 rebounds.
