Woodland boys defeat Handley, Handley girls over Woodland

Brandon Nunn hit a three-pointer in the final seconds of the game to put the Bobcats on top of the Tigers 59-56 Thursday night in Woodland.

Woodland head coach Larry Strain said both teams played excellent defense the whole game leading up to the close finish.

“It was as close a ball game as it could get all the way through,” Strain said. “Both teams had a hard time scoring in the first quarter.”

Trae Strain led Woodland with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Nunn contributed 11 points and Ocean Boyd added another 10 points and nine rebounds for the ‘Cats.

“It was just an overall good basketball game,” Strain said.

Clay County 45, Randolph County 43

The Randolph County Tigers continued to improve, but lost a close one to Clay County, 45-43, Thursday in Wedowee.

The Tigers had possession with about 30 seconds to go in the game. Quentin Prothro, who led the Tigers with 13 points on the night, was fouled while going for a lay-up, but missed the free throw.

Prothro got the round ball again at the three-point line with about three seconds remaining, but barely missed the shot, sealing the win for Clay County.

“We played as well as we could have,” Randolph County head coach Rodney Murphree said.

Although the Tigers have struggled so far this season, Murphree said his team is improving every game.

“They’re probably one of my favorite bunches of kids I’ve ever coached,” Murphree said. “We’re getting a little better all along.”

In addition to Prothro’s 13 points, Ben Johnson contributed 12 points for the Tigers.

Girls

Handley 71, Woodland 50

The Handley Tigers girl’s basketball team defeated the Woodland Lady ‘Cats 71-50 Wednesday night in Woodland.

Handley (6-3) held a 31-17 halftime lead and continued to dominate throughout the rest of the game.

Handley head coach Jimmy Askew said the key to winning the game was shutting down Woodland’s star player, Courtney Strain.

“We just kind of limited her scoring,” Askew said. “We had a couple of girls designated to play man on her and they did a good job.”

Brittany Shears led Handley with 28 points and 10 rebounds. Brittany Paige contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds while Paige Morgan added another 14 points.

Strain led the Lady ‘Cats with 37 points and 17 rebounds.