SEC Quarterfinal Recaps
by Ryan Glenn
No. 1W Alabama 69, No. 5W Ole Miss 52
ATLANTA, Ga. – Ole Miss came out looking like they were not even tired from their game the day before. The Rebels were sparked when Kendrick Fox made a three-pointer to open the game. Until the 2:51 mark, neither team had more than a three-point lead. That is when Earnest Shelton put down a three-pointer to give Alabama a four-point lead. Justin Jones added a lay-up near the end of the half, to send the Crimson Tide into the locker room with a six-point lead.
Early in the second half, Ole Miss was able to cut the lead to three, but then Alabama just took over. Tommie Eddie tried to keep the Rebels in it, by scoring 15 of his 19 points in the half. Just six minutes into the half, the Crimson Tide had their lead up to 14. Led by Shelton, who had fourteen in the half, Alabama dominated the half and there was not a question of what the outcome would be.
Shelton finished with a game-high 26 points for the Tide. Chuck Davis also added in 15 points and seven rebounds. For the Rebels, Eddie had 19 points and seven rebounds.
Coach Mike Gottfried went with a smaller line-up against Ole Miss. “When you play teams like Ole Miss and Auburn, you play against teams with four perimeter guys,” Gottfried said. “If you don’t take an advantage on the offensive side of the game, you’ll be at a disadvantage on defense against teams like that.”
No. 2E Florida 80, No. 3W Mississippi State 64
Florida started the game on a 9-2 run and never looked back. Fueled by four treys from Matt Walsh and two big dunks from David Lee, the Gators never trailed and were able to shoot lights out and take a 46-29 lead into the second half. Florida was also able to shut down Lawrence Roberts, who finished with just eight points.
The second half was an even stronger showing for the Gators. Within minutes, Florida was up by 23 on a three-pointer from Lee Humphrey. The lead never went below 15 for the Gators. Mississippi State tried to stay in the game with Winsome Frazier’s shooting, but with no production anywhere else, they could not get it done.
Anthony Roberson and Corey Brewer were the stars of the game for Florida. Roberson put up a game-high 19 points and had five rebounds. Brewer, who had been averaging 6.9 ppg, ended with 17. Ontario Harper led Mississippi State with 16 points.
Billy Donovan knew he got some above-average play from Brewer. “We got really good play from Corey Brewer today,” he said. “He is not someone we usually rely on for scoring. I thought he made some big shots as the shot clock was going down. He made some good plays on both ends of the floor.”
No. 1E Kentucky 76 , No. 5E Tennessee 62
In one of the most anticipated games of the night, Kentucky did not disappoint. The Wildcats also showed that anybody can score at any time. In the first half they only had one person who scored in double-digits, but they had six players who had five or more points. The Vols’ freshman, Chris Lofton, was heavily guarded by Patrick Sparks. Lofton was only able to get off two shots and had two points in the half. The Wildcats, led by Kelenna Azubuike with ten points, went into halftime with a 47-29 lead.
In the second half, C.J. Watson came out on fire. Watson scored 13 of the Volunteers’ first 19 points in the half and brought Tennessee within nine, which would be as close as Tennessee would get. The Vols were missing open shots and turning the ball over on routine plays, which caused them to never get on that run they needed.
Azubuike finished with 18 points for the Wildcats, and Sparks added 16. For the Vols, Watson finished with a game-high 26 points following his great second half shooting.
“This was a good win for us,” Coach Tubby Smith said. “We got off to a good start with Kelenna (Azubuike) and Chuck (Hayes) getting us going early. I was impressed with Tennessee and how they came back and responded in the second half.”
After the game, Hoopville writer Matt Jones caught a near fight outside of the team’s locker rooms. Ramel Bradley apparently said some choice words to some Tennessee players. The Vols sparked back and Bradley was about ready to fight. Rajon Rondo then came and pulled Bradley away to avoid any further problems.
No. 2W LSU 89, No. 6W Auburn 58
In one of the biggest blowouts of the tournament thus far, LSU absolutely dominated Auburn for the entire game. LSU jumped out to a ten-point lead from the play of Antonio Hudson. Auburn was trying to hang in there, with Toney Douglas shooting as much as he could. Hudson, who had seventeen in the half, helped LSU to their 46-26 halftime lead.
The second half saw playing time for LSU’s bench and surprisingly, Glen Davis. Davis was able to take the spotlight with all of the other starters out, scoring 15 points and also grabbing four rebounds in the half. Even LSU’s bench was too much for Auburn, as they were able to finish the game with an 89-58 win.
Davis finished with a game-high 24 points and had eight rebounds. Hudson added to that with 21 points of his own. Nathan Watson finished as the high scorer for Auburn with 16 points.
Saturday’s Semifinal Schedule
No. 1W Alabama vs. No. 2E Florida – 1:00 PM EST
No. 1E Kentucky vs. No. 2W LSU – 3:15 PM EST
