Pippa Passes: On Tuesday night, February 2nd, the Alice Lloyd Eagles hosted the red-hot Johnson University Royals. When the dust had settled, the Caney Creek squad earned the 77-70 victory.
In the first half, the Eagles exploded to a 30-9 advantage and appeared to be home free. However, Johnson tightened up on the defensive end and ate into the lead. Despite that, the hosts would take a 45-32 lead at intermission.
In the second half, the Royals would reduce the deficit as ALC went cold. Even though the home club never lost their lead, the visitors would continue to battle. Fortunately, the Eagles refused to break and sank their free throws to pull out the nice victory.
For ALC (13-4), they produced a balanced attack. They were led on the night by junior forward Colyn Sturgill with 13 points and 9 rebounds He was followed closely by. senior guard Noah Young and junior guard Chandler Stewart, both with 12 points. Young added 5 assists.
Junior forward Will Philpot, sophomore forward Damon Tobler, and sophomore guard Jared Strickland all added 9 points. Philpot grabbed 11 rebounds while Tobler snagged 7. Sturgill and Philpot each had 2 blocks.
Alice Lloyd connected on 42.3% (30-71) from the field, but just 17.6% (3-17) from long range. From the charity line, they sank only 58.3% (14-24). Additionally, they registered 51 rebounds, 4 steals, and 10 assists.
JU (8-6), who had their seven-game winning streak snapped, was led by Orion Mashburn with 21 points. His club connected on 39.1% (27-69) from the field and 25% (6-24) from long range. From the foul line, they shot 76.9% (10-13). They also had 38 rebounds, 6 steals, and 9 assists.
The Eagles return back to action next week with four big contests. On Monday they play a return match at Johnson University. They then play three consecutive conference games. First, they host IU Southeast on Tuesday and follow that up against West Virginia Tech on Thursday. They close out next week with a match at Midway University on Saturday, February 15th.