Statesboro-The Southeast Bulloch Yellow Jackets faced a tough opponent on Tuesday night with the Benedictine Cadets coming to town. The Cadets held the lead in the region with a 10-4 record coming into the game.
Yellow Jackets’ Missed Opportunities Cost the Game
Southeast Bulloch lost an absolute battle to their regional opponents on Tuesday night 54-48. The two teams matched up well with both making it an emphasis to play fast. Full court presses were executed by both teams through the majority of the game and led to several turnovers and fastbreaks.
A first half filled with runs by both teams ended with the Yellow Jackets being up 27-25 at the break. Both offenses struggled to get a great sense of rhythm with the pressure they were faced with.
The third quarter followed suit with the Cadets outscoring the Yellow Jackets 17-14 to go into the final period with a 1-point lead.
Issues on the glass and at the free throw line doomed the Yellow Jackets in the fourth quarter. Southeast Bulloch forced several tough shots and misses but could not come down with the defensive rebounds to finish the possessions. The Yellow Jackets were undersized compared to the Cadets and tried to you their speed as an advantage, but it hurt them in the long run.
Southeast Bulloch Head Coach, Tony Raymond, felt like his team played a good game, but could execute better in the stretch moments. “I think it was two good teams playing and I think they just made a couple more plays at the end of the game that we didn’t make”, Raymond said.
SEB’s senior Zach Wells led the Yellow Jackets in scoring with 18 points. Brendan O’Dowd and Trey Jones also pitched in 8 and 7 points respectively.
Benedictine’s junior Caleb Jones led all scorers with 26 points. Senior LaDon Bryant was the difference maker in the game with 9 points and 8 rebounds. He came down with crucial offensive rebounds in the 4th quarter.
Coach Raymond loved how his team played against the tough opponent. “Going forward if we can keep this same energy and enthusiasm and just cut down on the mental mistakes, I think we will be fine come region time”, Raymond said.
The game on Tuesday night was the last home game of the regular season for the Yellow Jackets. They currently sit at an 11-9 record with 5 more games remaining. Southeast Bulloch is 3rd in their region with a 3-4 record.
UP NEXT:
Both Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams will be in action on Friday, February 2nd when the Southeast Bulloch Yellow Jackets travel to Burke County to take on the Bears.
The women will tip off at 6:00 p.m. with the men starting after.
