Slow starts doom Scottsboro teams as late rallies fall short at Fort Payne

Jason Bowen

The Scottsboro varsity boys basketball team’s rivalry game at TopCat rival Fort Payne could not have started any worse.

The Wildcats saw Fort Payne sink seven first quarter 3-pointers to trail 25-4 after one quarter.

Faced with a choice to make after the rough start, said Scottsboro head coach Jason Bell said, Scottsboro answered how he hoped.Trailing 36-14 at halftime, Scottsboro pulled within 45-33 after three quarters and got within 56-51 after back-to-back 3-pointers from Tyler Shelton and Jake Jones with a minute remaining. But the Wildcats were unable to connect from long range again in the closing stretch, allowing Fort Payne to hold on for a 60-51 win Tuesday at FPHS.

“(Fort Payne) didn’t miss in the first quarter. Our guys could’ve laid down but they didn’t,” Bell said. “I’m proud of the fight our guys showed.”

Tuesday’s setback snapped Scottsboro’s five-game winning streak. Jake Jones scored a game-high 22 points and Tyler Shelton had14 for the Wildcats while Antonio Brocks had eight, Bryce Bell six and Lawson Lee one.

Fort Payne (5-1) got 18 points from Lipscomb signee Josh Scott and 16 from Jackson Banks.

GIRLS

Fort Payne 52, Scottsboro 45 — At Fort Payne, the host team built an early lead and countered Scottsboro’s late-game rally to hand Scottsboro its first loss.

Scottsboro (7-1), held to a season-low point total, trailed 12-9 after one quarter and 27-12 at halftime before using a 6-0 third-quarter ending scoring run to pull within 32-30 entering the fourth. But Fort Payne (3-1) opened the final quarter with a 10-3 run to take its largest lead at 44-33 with 3:53 remaining. Tatum Shelton’s 3-pointer pulled Scottsboro to within 49-45 with 1:09 remaining, but the Wildcats never scored again while Fort Payne made 3-of-4 foul shots to put the game away.

Tatum Shelton scored 15 points and Izzy Nelson added 11 for Scottsboro, which also got eight from Morgan Perkins, five from Caroline Dawson and three each from Bree Sexton and Abigail Shelton.

Zimri Craig led Fort Payne with 16 points while Libby Redden and Anna Kathryn Akins had eight points each.