Sports
Boys Basketball: Spartans fall to Buckeyes on Senior Night
By: Jerod Scheetz
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The Alexander Spartans could not capitalize on an energetic night and fell 57-38 to the Nelsonville-York Buckeyes.
The Spartans (4-15, 2-8 TVC) are now mired in an eight game losing skid, as the Buckeyes (12-7, 5-4 TVC) used strength and size to hold Alexander down.
Nelsonville’s duo of 6’4 seniors had their way on both ends of the floor and controlled the game from the beginning. Daniel Kline and Kyle Moore each finished with two blocked shots, but altered countless attempts from the smaller Spartan players.
Kline finished with 13 points and seven rebounds on a night where he stole the show with two monster dunks. The first came when Alexander’s Chris Wingett drove middle and had his floater blocked by Kline. Kline grabbed the loose ball and took off down court. No Spartans could catch Kline before he finished with an impressive two-handed slam.
The dunk put his team up 25-14 with just over three minutes left in the first half. Alexander Coach Blaine Gabriel called timeout, but the damage was done. Kline’s play energized his teammates and got things rolling for the Buckeyes.
“Daniel’s dunk obviously energized everybody, energized our defense,” Nelsonville’s Coach Kline said after the win. “You know these are big momentum things and makes everybody happy, and a dad proud.”
The Buckeyes used the momentum to enter halftime with a 30-19 edge.
The Spartans best chance to get into this game was at the start of the second half, but Nelsonville came out firing, scoring eight points before the Spartans finally got on the board after halftime.
Alexander’s Jake Grey and Braden Jones, two leading scorers for the team, could not get going tonight and the team’s struggle to find points showed how important they are to this group. Grey finished with nine points and Jones with just eight. Jones dealt with foul trouble throughout the game, and never was able to establish himself inside against the Buckeye’s big men.
One bright spot for Alexander was the play of Jordan Mosley. Mosley, the freshman point guard, found a little bit of a scoring touch in the second half and finished with 10 points. If Mosley can find ways to contribute on offense in the tournament like he did tonight, the Spartans could be a tough out.
Both teams end their regular seasons tomorrow evening as the Buckeyes play host to the Athens Bulldogs and the Spartans take on MLK.