Sports
Athens Outlasts Alexander To Win 9th Straight Game
By: Will Collins
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When the Alexander Spartans traveled to take on rival Athens at Mcafee Gymnasium, they met a physical Bulldog team, in a game that would be added to the long list of historic games between the two squads.
The Bulldogs came out fast and played tough under the basket, but the Spartans would not go quietly tonight. The Bulldogs were able to come away with the victory 71-60 to win their 9th straight game.
From the tip Athens played a fast-paced game, jumping out to an 8-0 lead to start the game. It wasn’t until halfway into the first quarter that Alexander was able to score their first points.
The Bulldog offense was firing on all cylinders tonight, led by Logan Maxfield who was making plays all over the court, and were able to gather up key rebounds, and then turn the rebounds into more quality scoring chances, ending the first quarter up 16-5.
While the Alexander Spartans did have a slow start to the game, they would not give up easily. They were able to find holes in the Athens defense and put up some points in the second quarter.
The Spartans were able to capitalize on some turnovers that the Bulldogs committed and get their offense going as well, and by the end of the half, Athens was only ahead four, 31-27.
In the second half the game began to get even more physical, with each team fighting for rebounds, points in the paint, and for overall control of the game. The Bulldogs had the momentum going into the locker room but seemed to lose it when Alexander scored early to open the third quarter.
With a just minute left in the third quarter, Alexander found themselves down one point, 42-41, and would tie the game at 47 with seven minutes to go in the contest.
While the Spartans were able to keep themselves in this game, their efforts weren’t enough to keep up Athens and the Bulldogs began to pull away.
Key late three pointers from Isaiah Butcher and Robert Dickelman fueled the Athens offense in the fourth, and the Bulldogs got the win 71-60.
Logan Maxfield led the way for the Bulldogs tonight with 23 points scored in a variety of different ways, and was the player who kept Athens going the whole night.
Isaiah Butcher added 12 points, and Elijah Williams had 11 points for the Bulldogs as well. The Alexander Spartans leading scorer was Caleb Terry who had 20 points on the night, and was the lifeblood of the Spartan offense. Ryan Davidson added 12 points for Alexander as well.
Athens will finish their regular season on Saturday, February 17th, when they take on Morgan at home.
The Alexander Spartans have now wrapped up their regular season, and will take on the Nelsonville-York Buckeyes at Jackson High School on February 20th in the first round of the Sectional Tournament.