Bulldogs pull off the sweep in a back-and-forth classic
By: Joshua Jacob
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ALBANY, Ohio (WOUB) – The Athens Bulldogs took a trip to the Alley to have their rematch against the Alexander Spartans. The lead would switch multiple times throughout the game, resulting in a nailbiter. Athens would maintain control in the final minutes to complete the sweep 58-51.
Last time these two teams met, the Bulldogs pulled off a dominant 63-30 win. The Spartans knew they couldn’t let their rival get away with a win like that, so the atmosphere in the alley was tense. Head Coach Jordan Hill talked about how special the atmosphere at the Alley is.
“It’s a great environment, great student section. You know, honestly, prior to Covid, it was this atmosphere that you witnessed tonight. It was a regular thing. Didn’t matter who you played, but Athens was always magnified. So we’re hopeful in the next year or so we can get this place to be, just as loud and as crazy and chaotic, as it was tonight.”
As the game tipped off, the defense was the showcase for Alexander as the Bulldogs struggled to get open shots. The Spartans also struggled to get much going, but eventually they forced their way inside and scored in the paint. Alexander left the first quarter with a lead of 11-8.
In the second quarter, both teams improved spacing and hit some threes. Collin Chapman was unguardable from behind the arc, letting it fly as soon as he found open space. The Spartans continued to find their success in the paint. Noah Graves was the leading scorer for Alexander, ending the night with 18 points. Athens took the lead at halftime 23-21; however, Head Coach Mickey Cozart said they were struggling to gain momentum.
“You know these rivalry games because of this atmosphere we missed five or six pretty easy shots in that first half. We never got any momentum going because we couldn’t make the easy ones. You know the message at halftime was just calm down, play with composure.”
Both teams came out of the half on fire. Chapman continued to be an issue for the Spartans, knocking down three-pointers left and right. Jace Cooper got some big-time blocks that got the whole gym fired up and sent a message to the Bulldogs. The third ended with Athens up 43-41. Coach Hill said his big message for Alexander was an attack mentality to close out this game.
“They were really challenged by me at the beginning of the game and throughout the week, to have more fight and is what we call it attack so we needed to bring that attack mindset.”
In the last quarter, both teams attacked every possession as if it were their last. Scoring slowed, but stout defense took its place. Every time one side scored, it didn’t take long for their opponent to close the gap. In the last couple of minutes, Athens was up by two scores, and the Spartans needed to foul. The Bulldogs hit their shots from the charity stripe and closed out this game 58-51.
Athens will play one more conference game against Wellston on Feb. 17.
Alexander is done with their regular season and will wait to see who they face in the tournament.