ACHS vs. CHS in boys basketball district title game
Mavs upend Scott to advance for a shot at the crown
Senior Tate Russell led Anderson County High School scoring with 14 points as the Mavs overcame a halftime deficit to beat Scott High and advance to the district final. (photo:Rick Williams )
The Mavericks notched an upset victory over Scott Thursday night in the District 4-AAA Tournament semifinals.
ACHS, the No. 3 seed in the tournament, erased a halftime deficit to the second-seeded Highlanders to leave the hardwood with a 48-39 victory at Clinton High School’s Don W. Lockard Gymnasium.
The win avenged a pair of regular-season losses to Scott, where Jeffers was previously head coach.
Was the win particularly special for Jeffers?
It certainly had some sentimental significance, but what was important was that it allowed ACHS advance to Tuesday’s district championship game, and netted the Mavericks a home game to open the Region 2-AAA Tournament on Saturday.
“Scott was just the opponentl they were the next opponent that we had to play to get the chance to play for the district championship,” Jeffers said. “It wasn’t pretty basketball, but we were a lot tougher than we were against them the first two times.
“We were a lot more physical.”
Scott (13-17) defeated Anderson County 60-55 in Clinton on Dec. 9 and edged the Mavs (15-14) 69-58 in Huntsville in January.
Anderson County trailed 22-19 at halftime, but a big second half from Hayden Craig helped propel the Mavericks into the win column and on to the title game.
Craig scored all 11 of his points after halftime to spearhead Anderson County’s comeback against the Highlanders.
Tate Russell led ACHS with 14 points, and Brandon Dake chipped in with eight points on the night.
And the Mavericks’ win was only the beginning of the last week’s postseason surprises, as the bracket was turned upside down.
On Friday night, Clinton shocked top-seeded Halls 44-41 in the other tournament semifinal, setting up a third meeting between the two cross-county rivals, which was to be played Tuesday night at CHS. Results from the game were not available at press time.
The two teams split their regular-season meetings with each team winning at home.
Clinton prevailed in December in the league opener for both schools.
ACHS won in January.
