After leading 15-9 at the end of the first quarter and 23-18 at halftime, the Red Bay varsity boys came up short in the third and fourth quarters to end up 10 points short, 51-41 to Sulligent in the 2A AHSAA Area 15 tournament final Feb. 6.

Sulligent turned in a 21-10 score in the final quarter for the win.

Although the Blue Devils won by 10 points, Red Bay trailed by only four points in the final minute of play and were still in the game but failed to hit needed baskets.

Dakota Hester hit Red Bay’s final two-pointer to trail Sulligent 44-40 with just over one minute remaining.

Six of Sulligent’s points in the last minute came on free throws in the Tigers’ attempt to get control of the ball.

“They put it on the line tonight,” said head coach Matt Noah about the Red Bay boys’ game Friday.

“That’s what we’ve talked about all year is playing for 32 minutes. We’ve finally got the rhythm after having so many injuries.

“I couldn’t be prouder of these kids.”

Noah said Sulligent has hammered them every time they’ve played them.

“It’s even harder to come down to Sulligent and get a win.

“We fought our hearts out. I’m tickled for the kids, and I’m very proud of them,” Noah said.

Both teams played Feb. 10 in sub-regional play after the press deadline. The winners will advance to the regional tournament at Wallace State Feb. 12 and 13.

Dylan Gresham led Red Bay with 15 points, Dakota Hester added 10, Nick Thorn scored 10, Jesus Kelley added four, and Tate Ozbirn had one point.

Red Bay 49 Phil Campbell 45, area semi-final

Red Bay improved to 4-0 against the Bobcats to knock out Phil Campbell in the semi-final area tournament Feb. 3 at Sulligent.

The Tigers led 16-15 at the end of the first and took a 28-25 lead at halftime.

After trailing 9-6 at the end of the third, Phil Campbell came back in the fourth to outscore Red Bay 14-12 but couldn’t gain enough momentum to get the needed five points to win the game and advance to the final on Feb 6.

Dylan Gresham led Red Bay with 17, Dakota Hester and Nick Thorn scored 10 each, Jesus Kelley added four, Tate Ozbirn scored three, Austin Milam and Daniel Wooten added two each for Red Bay.

Phil Campbell’s Noah Williams led the Bobcats with 15, Peyton Thomas had 10, Hayden Bell scored seven, Michael Roberson and Grant Masterson had six each.

Skyler Tackett scored one point for Phil Campbell.