The Cross Creek Razorbacks defeated the Josey Eagles 45-40 in the final basketball game of the Augusta high school summer league on Thursday, June 24.
The Razorbacks and Eagles both had favorable seasons last year. The Eagles managed a record of 20-6 while the Razorbacks went 23-2 while winning the 3A state championship in the process.
The game was very fast-paced from the moment the ball was tipped off. Both the Eagles and the Razorbacks played a scrappy-man defense that applied pressure to the ball and passing outlets while in the half court. This style of play created turnovers on both sides that led to easy baskets in transition. The two teams combined for 14 turnovers with 10 minutes left to play in the first half.
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The size advantage of Cross Creek proved to be difficult for the Eagles to manage as junior center Jasiiyah Holmes was scoring at will in the first half, giving her team an edge while scoring and rebounding the ball. When the first half concluded, the Razorbacks led 26-20.
At the start of the second half, the Eagles adjusted to a 2-3 zone defense in which they would trap any post entry. This defensive scheme proved advantageous at first, but while Holmes began receiving double teams, she was able to pass to her teammates who were often wide-open form three-point range.
The Razorbacks took advantage of the slow defensive rotations by attempting several open three-point shots and connecting on five of them. This gave the Razorbacks a 36-28 lead with 12 minutes left to play in the game.
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From here, both teams tried to run set plays to get open shots, but the pressure proved to be too much as even more turnovers were committed. Josey was able to claw back into the game by taking advantage of these easy turnovers and took advantage of the easy scoring opportunities.
With five minutes left in the game, the score was 41-40 in favor of the Razorbacks. Cross Creek began to apply full court pressure which caught the Eagles off-guard. The Razorbacks were able to capitalize off two Josey turnovers before the Eagles made an adjustment. By this time, the score was 45-40 with two minutes remaining.
The Eagles tried to run a set play for an open shot but were unsuccessful in their execution as the Razorback pressure defense proved difficult to penetrate.
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The game ended with a final score of 45-40 in favor of Cross Creek. Holmes scored 14 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to aid in the Razorback victory.
“I scored easily at first because of my size, but when I started getting double teamed, I had to rely on my teammates for scoring. It was nice to know that I could count on them to get the job done when I wasn’t playing to my potential,” said Holmes.
The Razorbacks concluded the high school summer league with a perfect record of 4-0 while the Eagles went 3-1. Both teams will be back in action for the regular season in October.
Jack Johnson is a Sports Intern with the The Augusta Press. Reach him at JACJOHNSON@augusta.edu.
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