By Staff
Tim Cottrell
Following a heart-breaking loss to B.C. Rain, Escambia County High School steam-rolled its way to two consecutive wins.
Last Tuesday, the Big Blue crushed T.R. Miller 76-51 in a game that coach William Brown called "a total team effort."
On Friday night, ECHS played Gulf Shores in a very close game. Atmore started out slow as they trailed the Dolphins 12-10 at the end of the first quarter. The Dolphins managed to control the game and took a 29-26 lead to the locker room at half time. The leading scorers for the game were Quartez James and Frank Taylor who scored 12 points each. The seniors Jeremy McCants and Larenzo Arnold combined for 17 points and McCants shot four out of six from the foul line. Atmore as a team shot 9 out of 12 from the free-throw line and all their starters chipped in as well, turning the tide on the Dolphins. The Big Blue won the game with an impressive performance in the second half. "Defense wins championships," said Brown and Atmore's defense stepped it up in a big way, shutting down Gulf Shores when they had to. ECHS pulled out the win as their offense outscored the Dolphins' offense 41-35 in the second half. The final score was 67-64 in favor of the Big Blue.
As ECHS wraps up the regular season this week at home, coach Brown is focusing on defense and ball control to prepare his team for the playoffs. At practice on Monday, the A-team worked on ball control, free-throws, and their defense. "We need to step up on defense and play together," said Brown. "We control our own destiny." Brown hopes that destiny is a state championship. "I encourage anyone who will, to come out and support us as we get ready for the playoffs."
The area tournament will begin next week in Jackson.