Braves win third straight in region play

(Franklin, GA) — The Heard County Braves claimed wins over Lamar County and Temple this weekend to even up their Region 5-AA record at 3-3 and set up an exciting rematch at tomorrow night in Franklin.

The Braves knocked off the Lamar County Trojans 60-44 at home Friday night as the team recognized senior point guard Alijah Huzzie’s 1000 career point accomplishment with the presentation of a plaque prior to the game.

#HuzzieFactor did not disappoint the home crowd as he again led the squad in scoring with 20 points.

Not far behind him though was the hot-shooting sophomore Khalil Cofield who dropped a career-high 18 on the Trojans including three of the team’s six 3-point baskets.

Senior Brave Will Hammett (Photo: Jeff Napier)

Senior Tray Dunson had a strong night scoring with 10 points while freshman Jameer Cook and senior Will Hammett each added four.

The Braves led by 18 at the half and 17 after the third quarter.

Head Coach Keith Simmons is pleased with the way his team responded after a much needed week-long break between games.

“You can really tell that week of practice came at the right time. I think that was the first time since we got everyone here that we have been able to practice more than two times in a row and give us a chance to work on some things,” said Coach Keith Simmons after the game.

The coach was especially pleased with the effort on the defensive end of the floor.

“Khalil shot the ball real well tonight and Huzzie is always going to be Huzzie and Tray Dunson had good night for us. The guys played a really inspired game on defense — that was the best first half effort defensively we’ve had all year by far. I always tell them that some nights your shots will fall and some nights they won’t but if you can hang your hat on defense you’ll be in every game,” Simmons said.

The Braves again responded on the defensive end of the floor Saturday night as they picked up a solid 54-37 road win at Temple. Leading the way defensively were Dunson and Komari Clark.

On the offensive end, Huzzie led the way with 16 points, seven assists, and seven rebounds along with sophomore Ayden Cannon who scored 11 and hauled in five rebounds. Hammett and Cofield each scored eight.

The Braves will kick off the second half of the region regular season Tuesday night at home when they host the Bremen Blue Devils.

The Braves (5-10, 3-3) and Devils (8-9, 3-3) currently share the third spot in the region standings with identical 3-3 records but the Devils hold the advantage based on the 55-53 overtime loss at Bremen on January 2 meaning the win is crucial for the Braves.

“We’re just trying to work on our consistency and I think that’s coming and we will be good going forward from here — hopefully we can keep this momentum,” added Simmons.

The Lady Braves fought hard with the region’s top team the Lady Trojans Friday night before falling 47-41 to the very athletic squad that sported only two losses coming in to the game — both coming to Upson-Lee.

Three Lady Braves finished the game in double figures including Morgan Kay and Tori Caldwell who each scored 12 and Hermonie Garza who tallied 10. The Lady Braves fell at Temple 53-29 on Saturday and currently are fifth in the region standings.

The Braves and Lady Braves face two important Region 5-AA games this week as they will travel to Callaway on Friday night after hosting Bremen tomorrow. Girls games tip at 6:00 PM and the boys follow each night at 7:30 PM.