BY BRIAN HAMILTON
SEYMOUR – Seymour led Carter throughout most of the game, building a 17-point lead early in the fourth quarter before Carter used a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to 10. The Eagles would answer by closing the game on an 18-3 run to win 85-60 and claim a 3-seed in the region tournament.
Seymour’s Gio Tyler (3) goes up for a basket over Carter’s Liam Zimmerman (4). Photo by Brian Hamilton
“I didn’t want to blow a timeout at that time, because I think that’s going to help us later on, that adversity, that chaos right there,” Seymour coach Clint Sharp said. “I called one (timeout), but they still went on a run, so I let them filter it out, but I wasn’t going to call another timeout to bail them completely out. I didn’t say much to them, other than, ‘Do what you’ve been coached to do, execute the transition, once we get it across (half court), they’re gambling, so somebody will be open.’ I felt like we still had the game at hand, even though they were going on a little run, but I felt like we were the better team and I wanted them to be tested for when we play Clinton, or somebody like that.”
Carter got on the board first when Grayson Watson hit a layup with 6:31 left to make the score 2-0, but a pair of David Canterbury free throws knotted the score up at 2-2 moments after.
A steal and layup by Noah Bohanan would give Seymour a 4-2 lead, but Wyatt Trull answered with a layup to tie the game at 4-4 with just under six minutes left in the first quarter.
Watson hit a jumper to put Carter ahead 6-4, but a three by Hayes Golden gave Seymour a 7-6 lead midway through the period. Waylon Tummel tied the game at 7-7 when he split a pair of free throws, but Abe Hess nailed a short jumper for Seymour to put the Eagles ahead 9-7.
Another three by Golden put Seymour ahead 12-7. The senior then grabbed a steal and hit a contested layup to give the Eagles a 14-7 lead, capping a 10-1 run.
Watson was fouled on a three-pointer with 1:30 left and sank all three foul shots to make the score 14-10, which is how the first quarter would end.
Carter opened the second quarter with a three to pull to within 14-13, but a pair of baskets by Hess and Gio Tyler would stretch the Seymour lead to 18-13 with just under six minutes left.
Another Carter three would trim the deficit to 18-16, but Seymour would answer with a 10-0 run, capped by a Clay Keesling three-pointer, which gave the Eagles a 28-16 lead.
A basket by Watson would end the Seymour run and pull Carter to within 28-18 with just over four minutes left in the quarter. Devonte Scruggs hit a basket to make the score 28-20, but Seymour’s Keesling answered with his second three of the game to put the Eagles ahead 31-20.
Carter’s Greyson Watson (22) goes up for a basket while Seymour’s Jonas Black (25) and Hayes Golden (11) defend. Watson and Golden both finished with a game-high 25 points apiece. Photo by Brian Hamilton
A third three-pointer by Keesling made the score 34-22 with 2:28 left in the half. Hayes Golden sank a floater with 1:18 left to make the score 36-24, but Watson would answer by converting an old-fashioned three-point play to pull Carter to within 36-27.
Tyler sank a pair of free throws with 50 seconds remaining, but Carter would miss a three at the second quarter buzzer to send Seymour to halftime with a 38-27 lead.
Keesling opened the third quarter with his fourth three of the game, giving Seymour a 43-27 lead. The Eagles would stretch the lead to 18 when Golden hit a three to make the score 50-32 midway through the period.
Carter would trim the deficit down to 15 when Andrew Brown hit a three-pointer, followed by a fast break layup by Bryson Pressley, which made the score 61-46. Jonas Black grabbed a rebound and put it back for a basket with 12 seconds left to give Seymour a 63-46 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Black made a basket to put Seymour ahead 65-48, but Carter would then go on a run. A three by Pressley cut the Seymour lead down to 67-53 with 5:11 remaining and two free throws by Liam Zimmerman got the lead down to 10, at 67-57, as the Hornets capped a 7-0 run.
Seymour answered by going on a run of its own when Gio Tyler hit a jumper, which was followed by a traditional three-point play by Bohanan, which pushed the lead back to 73-57. Things would snowball for the Hornets from there, as Seymour ended the game on an 18-3 run after the lead was cut to 10, winning 85-60.
Hayes Golden led Seymour with 25 points, while Clay Keesling scored 18 points on six threes. Noah Bohanan finished with 11 points, while Gio Tyler added 10 points for the Eagles.
“He’s an energy guy, but he’s a small guy, so it’s hard to get his shot off at times,” Sharp said of Keesling. “He’s an unbelievable shooter, but its hard for him to get his shot off since he’s such a small guy, but they were leaving him open tonight. I tell him all the time that he’s the best shooter in the gym, so he can go let it fly. He’s a very confident guy too. It doesn’t matter if he’s cold, he’ll come in and knock it down.
Greyson Watson was the only player in double figures for Carter, finishing with 25 points. Bryson Pressley and Andrew Brown added seven points apiece for the Hornets.
Seymour (20-9) will travel to Scott (18-12) on Saturday in search of a region win that has long eluded the Eagles. Carter (15-16) will go on the road to face Clinton (24-5) in the region quarterfinals on Saturday night.