HARTSELLE – Hartselle opened the third quarter on a 19-0 run which powered the Tigers to a 72-48 victory over Florence.
The Tigers, who led 26-25 at halftime, outscored the Falcons 29-11 in the third to take a commanding 54-36 lead into the fourth quarter.
Brody Peebles finished with 33 points for Hartselle. Jackson Raley, Tad Sivley, and Trent Wright each added eight points, while Luke Ward had seven.
Florence (10-5) was led by Jameris Lee who finished with 11 points. He hit three of the Falcons five 3-pointers but only one in the second half. Dee Beckwith added 10 points and eight rebounds while Jaeden Webster had nine points and 10 rebounds.
The Falcons opened the game on an 8-0 run and extended it to 11-2 before Hartselle clawed their way back into the game with an 8-0 run to get with one. Florence held onto the one-point lead, 15-14, going into the second quarter.
Lee hit three of the Falcons five 3-pointers but only one in the second half.
Hartselle (16-4) hit eight 3-pointers in the game with Peebles knocking down four and Raley hitting two. Ward and Ryan Dunn each hit one.
Peebles scored 20 of his 33 in the second half including 10 during the 19-0 run to open the third quarter. Ward scored all of his points in the second half while Wright scored six.
Florence entered the game having won eight of their last 10 games. The Falcons were held 15 points below their season average by the Hartselle defense.
Hartselle has won 12 out of 14 since they had a two-game losing streak back in November.
COACH KEY’S THOUGHTS: This game showed the maturity of our team. We fell behind 11-2 but didn’t fall apart. We believed in our team and that turned the game in favor.
Third quarters have been our friend this season. We made some adjustments at halftime for our defense that led to some easy scoring chances for our offense.
UP NEXT: Hartselle will host Decatur on Tuesday night. It will be the first area game for both teams.
