Belgreen sweeps Phillips

Jake Tittle (30) and Dustin Smith (32) go up for a rebound against Phillips Tuesday night. J.R. Tidwell/FCT

J.R. Tidwell
jrtidwell@fct.wpengine.com

BEAR CREEK — The Belgreen Bulldogs boy’s varsity team defeated the Phillips Bears 52-33 Tuesday night.
The match up did not take long to heat up, as players on both sides produced some very physical performances.
This physicality came to a head when senior Bulldog Chaney Simmons drew a technical foul after throwing the ball over a referee’s head out of bounds after a call that went in favor of the Bears.
Belgreen kept up the pace and posted an 18-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.“I thought we played really hard,” Belgreen head coach Greg Watson said.
“They are really hard to guard, and any win in the area is a good one.”
Belgreen picked up the pace in the second quarter, giving them a 34-15 advantage at halftime.
The Bulldogs could not get shots to fall early on after intermission, allowing the Bears to go on a 7-2 run through the first half of the third quarter.
Belgreen battled back to take a 42-28 going into the fourth, despite being outscored 13-8 in the previous eight minutes. Neither team produced a lot of points in the final quarter, and Belgreen ended up with a 17-point area win.
“We have to cut down on our turnovers and we’re missing shots, so there’s still room for improvement,” Watson said.
Dustin Smith led the Bulldogs in scoring with 15. Jake Tittle and Josh Devaney hit double figures as well with 12 and 11 points respectively.
Also scoring for Belgreen were Simmons (5), Jared Mitchell (2), Zach Leverett (2) and Brock Hester (2).
Belgreen will host Phillips Tuesday.

Belgreen Girl’s Varsity 51
Phillips 38

The Belgreen Lady Bulldogs picked up their third win against the Phillips She Bears Tuesday night.
All three of the wins for Belgreen have been in the area.
“Being 3-0 in the area is really important,” Belgreen head coach Ritchie Hester said. “We have a big game coming up against Tharptown where we will both try to be first in the area, and because of that we may have overlooked this game a bit.”
Phillips had the lead early, but Belgreen would not be held back. The Lady Bulldogs tied the game up at 9-9 near the end of the first quarter.
The teams went back-and-forth throughout the early stages of the second quarter, but Belgreen took a 15-14 lead midway through the quarter.
The Lady Bulldogs retained the advantage at the half but just barely, at 20-18.
Phillips tied the game again by making the first field goal of the third quarter, but Belgreen went ahead again by making a basket of its own just seconds later.
Seniors Erica Smith and Bridget Thompson accelerated the Lady Bulldogs’ scoring throughout the third, giving Belgreen a six-point advantage at the midpoint of the third.
“Erica and Bridget had a big game for us, but they’re seniors and they’re going to have to,” Hester said.
Smith hit a couple of shots from behind the arc in the late third and fourth quarters, proving once again why she should not be given an open look at a three-pointer.
The Lady Bulldogs pulled away from the She Bears late, giving them the 13-point victory.
Smith led Belgreen in scoring with 24, including making three three-point shots. Thompson also hit double digits with 15. Also scoring for the Lady Bulldogs were Laken Bragwell (5), Lauren Oliver (2), Hanna Taylor (2), Allyson Bragwell (2) and Haley Simmons (1).
“We’re a young team but we’re getting better,” Hester said. “We’re basically playing the two seniors with eighth and ninth graders.”

Belgreen Junior Varsity Boys 44
Phillips 36

The Belgreen junior varsity boys were never out of the woods against Phillips, but they did manage to hold the Bears at arm’s length throughout the match.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early lead at 8-4 in the first four minutes, but the Bears narrowed the gap to 13-10 at the end of one.
Belgreen would keep up this trend of having a three- or four-point lead during most of the game.
Both teams added exactly 10 points to their totals in the second quarter, giving the Bulldogs a 23-20 advantage at the intermission.
The game was within 3 points yet again at the end of the third quarter, with Belgreen up 32-29.
The Bulldogs finally opened the scoring gap in the fourth, going on a 12-7 run in the final quarter to pick up the eight-point win.

Belgreen Junior Varsity Girls 32
Phillips 15

The Belgreen Lady Bulldogs junior varsity picked up an easy win over the Phillips She Bears in a low-scoring affair Tuesday night.
Belgreen led throughout the match, taking a 23-8 advantage into the fourth and final quarter.
Both teams were plagued by turnovers, with most of the troubles for Belgreen due to an obvious height advantage enjoyed by the She Bears.
Despite the problems, Belgreen posted the 17-point victory.