BY GRAHAM DUNN
PHOTOS BY TIM GAYLE
SPORTS – SPECIAL TO EAN
Top Photo: AA’s Pharrell Banks, Patrician’s Dalton Bracknell
The Autauga Academy boys put their undefeated record on the line on Friday, knowing a little bit about their semifinal opponent, Patrician.
Oddly, the Saints may have been in the dark about the Generals’ style of play.
In a somewhat uncharacteristic fashion, the Generals moved a step closer to a perfect season and a state championship with a 63-46 win over Patrician in the Class AA semis at the Cramton Bowl Multiplex.
The Generals improved to 17-0 and earned a berth in the state championship where they will face Chambers Academy on Monday at 2 p.m.
“We knew this would be a test,” Autauga Academy Coach William Turner said. “We really hadn’t faced a team like and you look at their record (16-3) and you are impressed with the way they shoot the ball. They had a really good team.”
Autauga Academy was prepared for the zone defense Patrician would play, even if that meant more shots from the outside. But the Saints may have gotten a surprise of their own when the Generals proved they could beat you in more ways than dumping the ball inside.
“If they watched us last game (in the win over Lowndes Academy), we took just three shots behind the arc,” Turner said. “We had to make adjustments and get used to a slower pace. We like to get it to the basket with A.J. (Perry) and Rob (Rose) but we will take some 3s if they are available.”
While Patrician was known for long-range shooting (they shot 20 times from 3-Land in Friday’s loss) it was Autauga doing the damage from behind the arc, hitting 9 of 18 including three straight to pull away in the second quarter.
“We can shoot them when we need them,” Rose said. “We knew this would be a test with how (Patrician) shoots the ball. We thought they might come out and zone us, which they did, so we had chances to take some shots, unlike the last game.”
The Generals also forced 18 turnovers in the game which played a role in building as much as a 19-point lead in the second half.
“We have to play good defense for our style of play to work,” Perry said. “We were prepared for what they were going to do. We trusted our teammates to make plays on the defensive end, which led to some easy points.”
Perry and Rose each finished with 22 points to pace the Autauga scoring. Perry had six made 3-pointers while Rose had two. Josh Palmer also reached double figures with 10 points.
Tyler Lewis led Patrician with 13 points.
Using the metaphoric ladder rungs to count the steps to a title, Turner has the Generals on the brink of history for the school. A state title is within reach.
“We have tried not to get ahead of ourselves,” he said. “We’ve talked about the next rung on the ladder and so far, we’ve been able move up. But we also are high up and a fall at this point would be a catastrophe. So, one more step from what we want to accomplish.”
