BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Garrison Smith gave the Union County High School boys basketball team a chance to tie the game after making two technical free throws, but the Tigers missed a three-point shot in the final seconds of a 55-52 loss to host Branford on Jan. 31.
The Tigers (13-7) trailed 14-8 in the second quarter before going on a 9-0 run that began with an Adrian Manns basket. R.J. Odom knocked down a three-pointer following a turnover, while another turnover led to Montrell Woods going to the foul line, where he made one of his two free-throw attempts. Jackson Andersen-Davis had a score to put Union up by two and then had a steal, which led Smith getting fouled going to the basket. Smith made one free throw to give the Tigers a 17-14 lead.
Union got another three-pointer from Odom and two-point baskets from Andersen-Davis and Jaylen Pierre in taking a four-point lead into halftime.
Manns and Odom scored six and five points, respectively, in the third quarter as the Tigers maintained their lead, though they were up only 42-41 entering the fourth quarter.
The Tigers got a pair of baskets from Manns early in the fourth, but the Bucs (11-13) were able to take the lead, getting two free throws from Anthony Washington and two baskets following turnovers, including a three-point shot by Anthony Bailey to make the score 50-46.
Smith scored off a steal to make it a 50-48 game with approximately two minutes left. Pierre then tied it at 50-50 with a pull-up jumper with a minute remaining.
Branford’s Washington had a basket to put the Bucs up by two. The Bucs’ Arkayvion Jones was then fouled with 14 seconds left after a Union turnover. He made his first free-throw attempt before missing the second. The miss, though, was rebounded by Branford, which led to a basket by Jones that put the Bucs ahead 55-50.
Branford was called for delay of game for the second time in the game, which resulted in a technical foul. After Smith made both awarded free-throw attempts, the Tigers’ Odom attempted to sink his fourth three-point basket of the game, but the attempt came up just short.
Manns and Odom finished with 16 and 13 points, respectively, while Andersen-Davis and Pierre each added eight. The Tigers also got six points from Smith and one point from Woods.
The loss snapped a three-game win streak that began with a 70-47 win over host Dixie County on Jan. 26. Odom and Woods each scored 14 points, while Smith and Manns had 13 and 10, respectively. Andersen-Davis and Tyrese Chandler had eight and seven points, respectively, with Pierre adding four points.
Odom and Dareell Merriex each had five assists, while Woods led the team in steals with four.
Manns grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
On Jan. 27, the Tigers got 22 points from Pierre and 21 points from Smith in a 56-48 win over host Suwannee. Union also got six points from Andersen-Davis, four from Manns and three from Woods.
Andersen-Davis pulled down 15 rebounds, while Pierre led the team in assists and steals with four each.
Odom also had four steals.
Union hosted Bell on Jan. 29, getting 16 points from Smith in a 60-49 win.
Pierre and Woods each scored 10 points, while the Tigers also got eight from Manns, five each from Andersen-Davis and Odom, four from Erick Lasseter and two from Cadenz Merriex.
The Tigers will next play in the District 6-Rural tournament. As the number-two seed, they have a first-round bye and will host third seed Fort White or sixth seed Bell in a semifinal game on Thursday, Feb. 5, at 7 p.m. If Union wins, it’ll play for the championship on Saturday, Feb. 7, at 7 p.m. against either top seed Trenton, fourth seed Taylor County or fifth seed Dixie County. The Tigers would travel to play Trenton, but host either of the other two teams.
