By Michael Lindsay
Cumberland County traveled to Smithville Tuesday evening as the Jets and Lady Jets split a pair of District 7-3A contests with DeKalb County.
The Lady Jets opened the evening with a 54-42 victory followed by DeKalb County’s boys pulling out a 72-62 victory over the Jets in overtime as Connor Close dropped 37 points for the Tigers along with 35 by CCHS freshman Huston Torres.
Girls
The Lady Jets got back in the win column Friday as they picked up a 54-42 victory at DeKalb County.
Freshman guard Sydney Wilhite led the Lady Jets with 20 points along with 19 by senior forward Jalynn Baldwin. CCHS freshman Lauren Clark recorded 13 rebounds and 6 points in the victory while Ella VanVranken led DeKalb County with 17 points.
Cumberland County held a 9-4 advantage after one quarter before pushing their lead to double digits by halftime at 24-14. The Lady Jets outscored DeKalb County 19-12 in the third quarter to take a 43-26 lead into the final frame.
DeKalb County closed the gap in the fourth quarter, but Cumberland County held off the Tigerettes to win by a 54-42 final score.
Cumberland County improves to 13-5 overall and 1-1 in District 7-3A play while DeKalb County falls to 8-9 and 0-2. The Lady Jets travel to White County on Friday while DeKalb County hits the road to Upperman.
Cumberland County (54): Sydney Wilhite 20, Jalynn Baldwin 19, Lauren Clark 6, Aliyah Hawkins 4, Carley Turner 3, Lexi Carroll 2
DeKalb County (42): Ella VanVranken 17, Avery Agee 12, Tess Barton 4, Camryn Branin 4, Chloe VanVranken 3, Allie Melton 2
Boys
It took an extra frame to decide a winner Tuesday as DeKalb County defeated Cumberland County in overtime, 72-62.
DeKalb County senior Connor Close and Cumberland County freshman Huston Torres put on a show as the duo combined for 72 points Tuesday. Close led the Tigers with 35 points along with 37 by Torres.
Close’s 35 points came without a three-pointer as he hit 10 shots from 2 and went 15-18 from the free-throw line. Torres went 11-13 from the charity stripe while making two three-pointers in the fourth quarter.
Cumberland County held a 14-13 lead after one period before DeKalb County outscored the Jets 16-7 in the second quarter to lead 29-21 at halftime. Close had 16 points at the break while Torres had 10.
The Jets closed the gap in the third quarter as they trailed 43-38 entering the fourth.
Cumberland County caught DeKalb with 4:01 remaining in the fourth quarter as a Torres layup gave the Jets a 51-50 lead.
CCHS held a 53-50 advantage with 3:12 left before back-t0-back Close baskets gave DeKalb a 54-53 lead with 1:51 remaining.
An Ian Caldwell free throw with 21 seconds remaining put the Tigers ahead 58-55 before Torres answered with a three-pointer with 6 seconds left to tie the game at 58, sending it to overtime.
DeKalb County controlled the extra frame as they opened on an 8-0 run to take a 66-58 lead with 2:22 left. The Tigers outscored Cumberland County 14-4 in overtime to win by a 72-62 final score.
Cumberland County falls to 2-11 overall and 0-2 in district play while DeKalb County improves to 9-9 overall and 1-1 in league action. The Jets travel to White County on Friday while DeKalb County hits the road to Upperman.
DeKalb County (72): Conner Close 35, Jon Hendrix 17, Dallas Kirby 10, Seth Fuson 5, Alex Antoniak 2, Ian Caldwell 1
Cumberland County (62): Huston Torres 37, Andrew Dennis 12, Isaac Scarbrough 4, Sol Sitton 3, Asher Mifflin 2
