Huntsville City Classic Day 1 Recap
The 36th Annual Huntsville City Classic tipped off yesterday morning (December 27th) at Huntsville High school in Huntsville, Alabama. There are 16 teams represented in this tournament from the Huntsville and Birmingham area, as well as parts of Tennessee and Florida. In addition to some great teams, there are also a couple of notable players to watch for, like Kobe Brown from Lee High School, Malik Tyson from Sparkman High School, and AJ McGinnis from James Clemens High School, just to name a few.
Game 1: Sparkman 64 | Madison Academy 47
After a fast start in the first quarter, Sparkman continued to press the gas and ran Madison Academy out of the gym. Madison Academy did not do themselves any favors, shooting on 37% during the game, compared to Sparkman’s 43%. Luke Reavis led Madison Academy with 15 points and 3 rebounds. Malik Tyson led Sparkman to a win with 30 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Player of the Game: Malik Tyson
Next Matchup: Muscle Shoals
Game 2: Muscle Shoals 50 | Riverdale (TN) 48
This matchup was by far one of the best games on the day. After Riverdale got off to a good start, leading Muscle Shoals 16-8, Muscle Shoals fought back and outscored Riverdale by 8 points in the fourth quarter. Muscle Shoals took their largest lead of the night, 2 points, with 21 seconds left in the game. Deron Perry led Riverdale with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. Mark Sears led Muscle Scholas to a win with 21 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists.
Player of the Game: Mark Sears
Next Matchup: Muscle Shoals
Game 3: Columbia 69 | Hazel Green 40
Columbia started strong and didn’t stop. After a pretty dominant first half, Columbia finished the game shooting 47%, while Hazel Green shot a mere 23%. Hazel Green also added 18 turnovers to their scorebook, which didn’t help them at all. Columbia lead by as much as 31 points and easily took care of Hazel Green. Benjamin Pitts led Hazel Green with 16 points and 3 rebounds. Jamiah Holloway led Columbia to a win with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
Player of the Game: Jamiah Holloway
Next Game: James Clemens
Game 4: James Clemens 67 | Decatur Heritage 48
Decatur Heritage hung with James Clemens for most of the first half, but then a disastrous 19-4 third quarter pretty much sealed the victory for James Clemens. This was a pretty sloppy game, with both teams having a high number of turnovers. Decatur Heritage had 17 turnovers, while James Clemens had 15. Despite not being able to take care of the ball, James Clemens took care of Decatur Heritage pretty handily. Giancarlo Valdez led Decatur Heritage with 16 points and 4 rebounds. AJ McGinnis led James Clemens to a win with 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Player of the Game: AJ McGinnis
Next Game: Columbia
Game 5: Huntsville 51 | Crestview (FL) 48
This was one of the top games of the day, despite a very slow start for Crestview. After a 20-7 first quarter, Crestview battled back in the second half outscoring Huntsville by 15 points, but couldn’t quite complete the comeback. Both teams had an atrocious amount of turnovers, with a combined 46 turnovers. However, despite sloppy play, Huntsville shot 47% compared to Crestview’s 34% and won the game. Jaden Voisin led Crestview with 19 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. Nathan Moore led Huntsville to a victory with 13 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, and 3 steals.
Player of the Game: Nathan Moore
Next Game: Mae Jemison
Game 6: Mae Jemison 60 | Athens 42
Despite a close three quarters, Mae Jemison outscored Athens 20-8 in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Athens had 24 turnovers while shooting 47%, but they couldn’t pull it out in the fourth quarter. Mae Jemison had 15 steals to help them win the game in their fourth quarter finale. Antonio Shoulders lead Athens with 11 points and 2 rebounds. Tyrell Stanley led Jemison to a win with 20 points and 1 rebound.
Player of the Game: Tyrell Stanley
Next Game: Huntsville
Game 7: Oxford 57 | Grissom 54
Despite a slow start for both teams, this game turned out to be another one of the best games of the night. After ending the first quarter 7-6 (Grissom leading), both teams turned on the heat. Grissom shot 40%, while Oxford shot 49% to help give them the victory over Grissom. The second and third quarter was really the difference maker in this game, in which Oxford outscored Grissom by just 4 points. Jervae Peters led Grissom with 23 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. Zondrick Garrett II led Oxford to a win with 23 points, 10 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 3 steals.
Player of the Game: Zondrick Garrett II
Next Game: Lee
Game 8: Lee 77 | Ramsay 69
Both teams started the game out pretty strong, and Lee took a 1 point lead into the half. However, after a 21-15 third quarter in Lee’s favor, Ramsay was forced to play catchup and just couldn’t do it. Lee’s 55% shooting compared to Ramsay’s 41% also helped them get the win in this game. Cameron Scott led Ramsay with 16 points and 3 rebounds. Kobe Brown led Lee to a win with 28 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks.
Player of the Game: Kobe Brown
Next Game: Oxford
This concludes our Day 1 recap of the Huntsville City Classic!