Gary Corsair • Clay County Progress Hayesville's Carter Whitfield, No. 4, Micah Moss, No. 2, and Donovin Soto, No. 11, trap the ball against Andrews.
By Gary Corsair
Sports Writer
Hayesville 37, Murphy 35
The JV basketball boys drained 11-of-15 fourth-quarter free throws to repel the Bulldogs in a close Smoky Mountain Conference battle.
Kabe Shaheen and Carter Whitfield scored 9 points apiece, Micah Moss chipped in 7 and Damien Soto notched 5. Wes Jennings tallied 4, E.J. Mapusua 3.
Hayesville enjoyed leads of 9-6, 14-11 and 23-18 at the quarter breaks.
Hayesville 35, Andrews 29
Three points was the largest lead either team enjoyed during the first three quarters of this nip-and-tuck Tuesday night SMC showdown.
The scoreboard read 19-19 entering the final period, but the tie only lasted :19, until Damien Soto drained a 3-pointer to give Hayesville a lead it never relinquished.
Hayesville broke the visitors with aggressive, trapping defense.
Steals by Shaheen and Damien Soto led to fast-break points by Donivin Soto (a free throw) and Shaheen (a layup) that gave Hayesville a 27-21 lead.
Whitfield then took over, going back door for a bucket on a sweet feed from Donivin prior to draining back-to-back triples.
Andrews, repeatedly frustrated by relentless pressure — particularly traps set by Shaheen and Moss just over the half-court line — went 4:30 without scoring.
Andrews first basket of the quarter trimmed the lead to 29-23 with 2 minutes left to play, but Whitfield’s pair of treys in a :38 span.
“The guys played hard,” Hayesville Coach Josh Cottrell said. “We didn’t shoot the ball well and still found a way to make plays. Gritty win.”
The Jackets may not have shot particularly well, but they took care of the ball nicely. Hayesville made just five turnovers.
Shaheen paced the offense with 14 points and three steals without a turnover.
Damien Soto skied for 14 rebounds to go with 5 points and three steals. Moss contributed 6 points and six steals. Whitfield finished with 9 points on the strength of his 8-point fourth quarter. Donivin added three boards and a point. Jennings had three rebounds.