5 best players in the Memphis East/Whitehaven game
Memphis East opens up district play with a 73-69 win over Whitehaven Tuesday night, handing the Tigers their first loss (12-1) of the 2021 season. Here are the five best players from Tuesday’s matchup. E.J. Smith, Memphis East: The Mustangs’…
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Continue ReadingMemphis East opens up district play with a 73-69 win over Whitehaven Tuesday night, handing the Tigers their first loss (12-1) of the 2021 season.
Here are the five best players from Tuesday’s matchup.
E.J. Smith, Memphis East: The Mustangs’ success falls on the backs of Jamarion Harvey and Smith. Harvey didn’t have a great night, finishing with just eight points. But, Smith, a 6-foot-2 point guard, put Memphis East on his back with one score after another, leading his team with 28 points in the win. He had two important scoring stretches for his team in the second half. After senior guard Chip Brunt nailed a 3 to put Whitehaven up 39-36, Smith scored 10 points in a two-minute span to put the Mustangs up 50-44. In the fourth quarter, Smith, who went 6 for 8 from the free throw line, scored five straight points to give Memphis East its biggest lead of the night at 65-53. Whenever the Mustangs needed a bucket, Smith delivered. He took over the game when he needed to.
Billy Richmond, Memphis East: Richmond finished with 16 points. The 6-6 combo guard used his length to get into the lane and finished strong at the rim. Richmond was on the glass for putbacks. Whenever Smith saw double teams, Richmond was Memphis East’s second-best scoring option, and his production was just as important as Smith’s.
Kristian Spencer, Whitehaven: Spencer almost led the Tigers to a stunning victory. He scored five points in the final minute to help his team get within four (71-67) after trailing by as many 12 midway through the fourth quarter. Spencer was attacking the rim, making shots from 17-feet out and occasionally, knocking down shots from beyond the arc. The athletic guard led Whitehaven with 25 points.
Julius Theford, Whitehaven: Theford finished the night with 18 points. His 3-point shot wasn’t deadly Tuesday night as it has been for the entire season, but Theford made up for it by rebounding and getting putbacks. At 6-3, the sophomore guard is aggressive and doesn’t mind getting physical in the paint. His presence on the court was felt each time he had the basketball in his hands.
Chip Brunt, Whitehaven: Brunt had a quiet 15 points, scoring seven of them in the final quarter to help his team get within five (67-62) in the final two minutes. Like Theford, Brunt is another guard that can make shots from 3-point range, but the shots weren’t going in. The senior combo guard also attacked the rim when the lane was open. It probably didn’t look like Brunt affected the game, but his offense was good enough to make it a tight contest towards the end.