Priceville sweeps Danville to open basketball season
For the Enquirer
The 2024-25 basketball season opened Nov. 7, with Priceville traveling to Danville. The visiting Bulldogs swept the Hawks to pick up the first wins for new head coaches Shane Childress and Dale Taylor.
Girls Priceville 70, Danville 40
The Lady Bulldogs shook off a slow start to defeat Danville 70-40 to open the season.
Lillyan Bloodworth led Priceville with 12 points, five rebounds, and three steals, while Madelyn Williams added 11 points and three steals. Josie and Leah Childress each had nine points. Josie hit three 3-pointers, while Leah had six assists and four steals. Amidy Wilder finished with seven points and five rebounds.
“We were glad to get the opening night win,” Priceville coach Shane Childress said. “We made a lot of unforced errors that we were not making in practice. But we played unselfish basketball and looked for the open man on the floor. We have a lot to work on, but I am proud of our opening night effort.” Adily Alberti led Danville with 11 points and five rebounds, while Maddie Sherrill added nine points, five rebounds and three blocks. Addison Prater had seven points.
Priceville (1-0) faces Buckhorn on Saturday at the Lady Trojans Tip Off Tournament in Hazel Green. Danville (0-1) next plays on Tuesday against Lawrence County.
Hartselle 45, Gulf Shores 42 The Hartselle Lady Tigers opened the season with a 45-42 win over Gulf Shores at the Gulf Shores Tip Off Classic on Friday. Hannah Burks led Hartselle with 16 points, while Anna Hampton Burroughs added nine points for the Tigers. Elsie Boyd finished with seven points.
Hartselle 46, Daphne 31
The Lady Tigers continued play in the Gulf Shores Tip Off Classic with a 46-31 win over 7A Daphne. Burks finished with a game-high 21 points Mary Frances Itsede added eight points, while Burroughs had seven.
Boys Priceville boys 52, Danville 49 (OT) The Priceville Bulldogs opened their season with a 52-49 overtime win on the road at Danville. The Hawks battled back from a nine-point deficit in the final two minutes of the 4th quarter to force overtime. However, the Bulldogs outscored Danville 11-8 in overtime to get the win.
Luke Hood led Priceville with 18 points, including seven in overtime. Sammy Holmes added 14 points, while Sheldon Graham added a double-double, 12 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks. Tatum Sivley added 12 rebounds.
“I am really proud of our guys. It was a true team effort,” Priceville head coach Dale Taylor said. “We got into foul trouble early. If not for guys like Sheldon Graham and freshman Evan Hopkins, we wouldn’t have made it out of the first half. I felt like we had the momentum in the second half but made a few mistakes, especially late, and allowed them to come back, tie the game and even take the lead. But the guys never wavered and kept competing.” Ty Bailey led Danville with a gamehigh 25 points and 11 rebounds.
In other games, Cullman defeated Brewer 87-54 on Thursday.
