Bob Jones escapes Austin with win
BY LINDSAY VAUGHT
The top-ranked Bob Jones Patriots knew they would get their stiffest test of the season Friday night. It also happened to be the first area game and on the road at #6 ranked Austin. Trailing at halftime the Patriots were pushed to the final buzzer and needed big contributions from all five starters to down the Black Bears 57-52.
With Alabama Linebackers coach Sal Sunseri looking on, Reggie Ragland returned to the lineup in a big way. Playing all 32 minutes, he hit his first shot for the first points of the game. He was Bob Jones leading scorer with 17 points but it almost was not enough as Austin’s Detrick Mostella poured in 14 in the fourth quarter to lead Austin on a comeback that put the Black Bears up 52-51 with less than a minute to play.
With Bob Jones up 51-44 with 3:35 left the Patriots appeared poised to dribble out the clock and take an easy win. But missed free throws almost cost the Patriots the game as Travon Landry and Tyler Davis missed front ends of one-and-one.
“Against good teams like Austin you got to hit your free throws,” Bob Jones coach Danny Petty said. “The guys came through at the end that was big for us.
Meanwhile, Mostella hit a three pointer and came back with a three-point play, then a driving layup to put Austin up 52-51.
“He is a tremendous talent,” Petty said of Mostella, a 6-foot-3 junior who has over a dozen offers from major colleges. “He is a high flyer who can shoot the three too. I thought Brandon Harris did a pretty good job guarding him and Jeffrey Moss too.”
Mostella finished with 25 points.
Trailing by one point with 38 ticks left on the clock the Patriots went to Jeffrey Moss in the paint. Moss responded with a short jump shot to get the lead back for good.
“Travon, he does what he does, he gets to the basket and gets the ball to people. I just caught it and finished,” Moss said after the game. Moss finished with 16 points.
After an Austin turnover, Tyler Davis hit two free throws for the final margin.
In the first half turnovers plagued the Patriots as they trailed 13-11 after one and 25-24 at the half.
“We had a great crowd here tonight and I think that affected us until we settled down a little bit. It’s a big win for us being an area game and on the road as good as Austin is,” Petty said.
In the third quarter Bob Jones began controlling the boards and were up by as many as 11 at 49-38 after a Ragland three point play. Jeffrey Moss and Tyler Davis, who finished with 9, both had offensive rebounds after misses for baskets in the third quarter.
Travon Landry led Bob Jones with 6 assists and also had 9 points.
Bob Jones’ (8-0) next home game will be against Florence on January 3. The Patriots will play locally in the Huntsville Times Classic on December 27. They will play a 9 a.m. game the first day.
