SOUTHWEST 6A REGIONAL FINALS: Carver boys fall to Eufaula; Carver girls advance
By GRAHAM DUNN
In the words of coach Keith Patton, G.W. Carver’s first half against Eufaula in the AHSAA Class 6A Southwest final had an odious smell.
“It was a lot like pooh,” he stated. “(On a scale) of 1-10, it was a nine. We played about as poorly as we can play.”
The Wolverines would fight back from a 10-point deficit at the break and take a brief lead in the fourth quarter. But the Tigers finished off the game much like it started to earn a 69-67 victory and a trip to Birmingham next week.
The Tigers will be making their second-straight trip to the state semifinals and third in four years while Carver finishes the season at 13-4.
“We dug a hole and somehow climbed out of it,” Patton said. “To have a chance with the last shot, it was all I could ask for. I am really proud of how our guys battled to the end. We just couldn’t get that last shot for a win or a tie.”
Trailing by two, Carver had a chance in the final seconds but following a missed free throw, the Wolverines were unable to make the court-length pass for a shot, ending their hopes to advance.
Carver did about everything wrong in the first half including missing all six of its 3-point attempts. The Wolverines shot just 29 percent, committed 12 turnovers and, maybe more importantly, had three of their starters in foul trouble.
But Carver would outscore Eufaula by 12 points in the third quarter and led by two heading into the fourth. That started a back-and-forth contest with the Wolverines leading by as many as three in the final frame.
The Tigers took the lead with just over four minutes to play and possibly the biggest play followed. Juwon Gaston picked up his fifth foul with Carver trailing by three. He was called for charging while making a pass that would have resulted in an easy basket.
“I thought we would come out and play better,” Patton said. “I’m a rah-rah guy and not much of a yeller so I took it differently into the locker room.
“I’ve been with this program since 2012 and have seen us come back before. I knew there were two halves and I told them we could play better and make one of our runs.”
The Tigers (27-5) led by as many as 13 in the game.
“We did enough,” stated Eufaula coach Michael Smith. “Normally we shoot more 3s but we found other ways today. We had beaten them at our place back in December and I don’t know if that played a role in how we played but we knew Carver has a lot of pride.”
Rodarious “Rah Rah” Thomas led the Tigers with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Xavier Colvin had 19 to lead Carver to go along with 10 boards. Gaston added 12 points while Rayquan Taylor had 15.
Carver completed a difficult year that included several interruptions due to COVID.
“The last time we played them, it was as a substitute in their tournament,” Patton said. “Our tournament in Atlanta was scrapped so we went looking for something to replace it. They were nice enough to let us play.
“We had one practice and headed down there and played. We knew how tough they were coming in.”
Trinity Thomas on a drive for the Carver Wolverines in Thursday’s Class 6A Girls Southwest Regional Final at Garrett Coliseum. (Tim Gayle)
Carver girls hold off Eufaula for region title
Eufaula, which had briefly led in the third quarter, was back in the fourth, taking a one-point lead with 3:41 remaining. Undaunted, the Carver girls would outscore the Tigers 10-5 over the remainder of the game and capture the Southwest Regional 6A championship with a 66-62 win at Garrett Coliseum on Thursday afternoon.
“It’s nothing to get rattled about,” Carver coach Adria Harris said. “We’re out here, we’re both trying to score, it’s going to happen eventually. I think what really hurt us is we were sinking in (on defense) and not getting back on those 3-point shooters. We made that adjustment at the half. Kaitlin (Peterson) is a great player. She’s going to score some. It’s about trying to cut that in half or just limiting it.”
Peterson scored 16 of Eufaula’s 17 points over the final six minutes of the game but it wasn’t enough as the Wolverines scored 16 over the same stretch.
Carver (15-4) will face Chelsea (27-5) in the 6A semifinals at UAB’s Bartow Arena on Monday at 2 p.m.
“It feels extremely good,” Harris said. “I am really excited for this group. They’ve just been working so hard and this is what you work for, to say you’re one of the top four teams in the state.”
Eufaula ends the season at 26-5
“Hats off to Carver for a hard-fought win,” Eufaula coach Jermieke Cliatt said. “I think the biggest difference maker down the stretch was turnovers and free throws. I think we ended up with 17 turnovers, something that we don’t usually do. And free throws down the stretch, we missed when we needed to make ours and they made theirs. Today, Carver was the better team.”
Peterson’s 29 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals was nearly enough to send the Tigers to the state tournament, but Eufaula couldn’t hold on to a three-point lead with 2:16 remaining, turning over the ball three times and missing on all four shots from the field.
In that same stretch, Carver had a pair of turnovers, went 4 for 6 at the free-throw line and got baskets from Breanna Rhodes and Takya Norman.
Rhodes finished with 19 points, followed by Trinity Thomas with 15 points and Norman with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
- Tim Gayle