The Escambia County High School Blue Devils’ junior varsity basketball team cruised to a 71-59 victory over T.R. Miller’s varsity team, en route to a county tournament championship on Monday, Dec. 23.

Chile Ford and Devon Robinson picked up all-tournament honors, while Triston Knott was named the most valuable player.

The Blue Devils led by as many as 27 points during the fourth quarter of the championship game. They jumped out early to a 12-0 lead and led 20-4 at the end of the first quarter. They led 31-21 at halftime.

In the third quarter, ECHS built a 55-31 lead and in the fourth they led 59-32 with 6:22 left in the game.

Blue Devils’ coach Jerome Webster said the team was anxious playing against varsity squads at first, but that feeling dissipated.

“It was about getting them to go out and compete and execute,” Webster said. “I knew they had it in them.”

Webster said the key to success all tournament long was the Blue Devils’ pressure defense and attacking the goal on offense. ECHS played a full-court press the whole time and rotated players in and out to keep legs fresh, Webster said.

The Blue Devils also beat W.S. Neal 60-40 in the opening game of the tournament, and defeated Flomaton in a later tournament game.

 

 

.