Simpson
contenders in wide open AA title race
Southern
Sports & Travel
It
had all the trappings and intensity of a late February post season matchup on
Friday night in Mendenhall and when all was said and done sixth ranked home standing
Simpson edged third ranked Leake 68-65 in overtime to improve to 9-4 on the
season.
Simpson
would lead the entire first half but Leake stepped up its’ game coming out of
intermission.
“It
was definitely a big win for us,” said Simpson head coach James Crain. “I
thought tonight at times we played pretty good, I was real pleased we could
hang on and pull that game out.”
Simpson
got out to a 9-3 lead through the first five minutes of the opening quarter
behind the inside play and offensive rebounding of Daniel Taylor, Jake Brown
and Austin Douglas and would grab their biggest lead of the quarter at 19-12 when freshman Sam
McWilliams canned his second 3-pointer of the quarter at the horn.
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| Daniel Taylor of Simpson looks to drive past Leake's Tristan Hernandez |
The
junior spearheaded an 11-5 Rebel run to close out the half and pull Leake to within
five points at 30-25 at the halfway point of the contest.
“They
have one of the best players (Shepard) in the league,” said Crain. “We tried to
stay in front and not let him penetrate, we tried to keep him pushed out as
much as we could.”
With
Simpson maintaining a 40-36 edge at the 2:06 mark of the third quarter Leake
would produce a 9-3 run.
Brandon
Johnson drained a 3-pointer from the wing and was on the receiving end of an
Alex Shepard assist on a fast break to give the Rebels their first lead of the
game at 41-40 with 1:11 left in the quarter.
Shepard
capped the 9-3 run with a signature 15 foot jumper from the elbow at the buzzer
to give Leake a 45-43 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Simpson
quickly regained the lead at 46-45 as Sam McWilliams hit a 3-pointer from the
corner just 30 seconds into the quarter.
A
Chipper Jones bucket in the paint put Leake back on top at the 6:56 mark but
Simpson appeared to take control when Daniel Taylor’s offensive rebound and put
back with 3:41 remaining in regulation gave the Cougars a 57-49 cushion but
what ensued was a Leake 9-1 run capped by two Alex Shepard free throws as a result of a
technical assessed on Simpson head coach James Crain with 1:43 left in regulation to tie
the game at 58-58.
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The
lead quickly swapped hands again as Austin Douglas scored from the paint at the
36 seconds mark to put SCA up 61-60.
Alex
Shepard (Photo left) would draw a foul with 27 seconds remaining but could only convert on
one of two free throws and the contest would enter the four minute overtime
period notched up at 61-61.
Peyton
Sullivan’s transition basket at the 2:37 mark of the overtime period gave
Simpson a 63-61 lead, one they would not relinquish as the Cougars held on for
a tough 68-65 overtime win.
When
asked how long it would take his Simpson squad to gel following the long post
season football stretch Crain responded, “I hope that by the time January rolls
around we’ll keep our heads above water and start being able to play with some
folks.”
Simpson’s
Friday night overtime win over Leake was followed by a 56-39 road win over
Bowling Green on Saturday, the Cougar’s fifth win in its’ past six games.
Daniel
Taylor paced Simpson with 23 points, Sam McWilliams 17 (5 three's), Austin Douglas 11, Peyton
Sullivan 9, Jake Brown 6 and Ryan McElroy 2.
Leake
(10-3) was led by Alex Shepard with a game high 24 points, Chipper Jones added
21, Brandon Johnson 10, Tristan Hernandez 8 and William Johnston 2.
Simpson
and Leake will both be in action again following Christmas in the annual Simpson
Christmas Tournament that runs December 27 through the 30.
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Post Game with Simpson Head Coach James Crain
