(1) SCOTLANDVILLE 66, (2) ST. AUGUSTINE 39
at Scotlandville, Saturday (Mar. 14), Division I Championship
Records: Scotlandville, 34-3; St. Augustine, 31-2
HOW THE GAME WAS WON: 3 KEY MOMENTS
- A big second-quarter run by Scotlandville was the catalyst for a convincing victory in Saturday evening’s Division I title game. The Hornets quickly scored nine of the quarter’s first 11 points to take a 19-8 lead, and continued to pour it on pushing their lead as high as 30-11 after a driving layup by Reece Beekman with just under two minutes left until halftime. St. Aug was able to squeeze in a couple of baskets before the end of the quarter, but Scotlandville took a commanding 33-16 lead into the break.
- While most teams get a bit lackadaisical with a big lead, Scotlandville did no such thing. Their lead never fell below 21 the entire second half and grew as high as 26 in the when David Thomas III sank a 3-pointer for a 56-30 lead with 5:41 left in the game. Thomas III also buried another triple just before coach Carlos Sample pulled his starters with just under 40 seconds to play.
- The first quarter was really the only time St. Aug was able to find a bit of success. It mostly came on the defensive end as they held Scotlandville to just 10 points on 4-of-14 shooting.. But even then, Scotlandville’s defense was just as tough as they held St. Aug to only six points on 2-of-11 shooting.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Reece Beekman, Scotlandville
The game always seems to come so easy for Virginia signee Reece Beekman and Saturday was no different. The 6-foot-3 guard got to his spots at will and seemingly had his pick of wether he wanted to score or dish off to a teammate for an assist. He finished with yet another triple-double scoring 16 points with 11 rebounds and 10 assists while going 7-of-13 from the field, 1-of-3 from the free throw line, and made his only 3-point attempt of the game. As expected, Beekman was named the game’s Most Outstanding Player.
NOTABLE
- The coronavirus outbreak forced the LHSAA to keep fans from attending games, a policy that was put into effect on Friday. There were only a select few of about 50 people including coaches, players, school officials, security and media that were allowed in the building for Saturday’s game.
- It was the fourth championship in a row for Scotlandville as their dynasty continued to roll without current LSU sophomore Javonte Smart — who is just one of the many stars to suit up for the Hornets in recent history. They now have seven titles in a run that began in 2012 and they have been in the championship game every season since 2010.
- Scotlandville’s stellar senior class’ time came to an end with Saturday’s win. Reece Beekman has been a stalwart in the Hornets’ lineup since his freshman season while Tai’Reon “Scoota” Joseph and Carvell Teasett began to make their presences felt particularly in their junior seasons and beyond. The 6-foot-5 Virginia football signee Jonathan Horton was the lone big man in the middle for most of Scotlandville’s run and David Thomas III along with Morantz James gave the Hornets a couple of reliable players off the bench.
- St. Augustine had one of its best seasons in recent memory finishing the year 31-2. The Purple Knights had won their last 26 games and their only loss of the regular season was a 39-38 defeat to Madison Prep in a non-district contest at St. Aug on November 29.
- Seniors Jaron Pierre and D’Mari Wiltz were the catalysts to St. Aug’s success showing remarkable consistency game in and game out. Pierre, who most recently reported an offer from Southern Miss, finished with 11 points and six rebounds in his final game as a Purple Knight while Wiltz scored 13 with five assists, three rebounds, two steals and a block.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
St. Augustine | 6 | 10 (16) | 10 (26) | 13 – 39
Scotlandville | 10 | 23 (33) | 16 (49) | 17 – 66
INDIVIDUAL SCORING
St. Augustine: D’Mari Wiltz, 13; Jaron Pierre, 11; Jaden Clark, 5; Jaheim Walters, 3; Jason Malbrue, 3; Ashton Trufant, 3; Nasir DeGruy, 1.
Scotlandville: Tai’Reon Joseph, 20; Carvell Teasett, 20; Reece Beekman, 16; David Thomas III, 6; Jonathan Horton, 2; Zaheem Jackson, 2.
*****************
Josh Preston is a contributor in the New Orleans area for VSN Louisiana and can be reached at josh@varsitysportsnow.com. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/JPrestonSports.