Trinity uses depth to hold on to victory over WCCA, 55-39
Published 11:48 pm Thursday, December 7, 2017
With a great deal of depth, Trinity Episcopal basketball coach Mo Rodriguez isn’t going to let anyone stop the Saints from playing their game.
Trinity had eight different scorers Thursday night as it held on for 55-39 victory over Wilkinson County Christian Academy.
With two starters out, Rodriguez said he was pleased with how most everyone was able to contribute.
“I just want to give a chance to the ones that don’t play a lot an opportunity to feel the court,” he said. “I think we have such a good team overall, but it is hard to give everyone playing time. I just try to keep them moving around.”
Trinity had no problem in the first half driving under the basket, aided by long passes down court. E’Daniel Jones led the pack, ultimately scoring 18 points total — all in the paint.
“We try to play our game, and that works,” Rodriguez said. “We are not going to go down to anybody else’s level.”
The Saints held a 39-11 edge at halftime, and WCCA coach Ken Perry knew his team needed to make a change.
While the Saints have numbers in their realm of strengths with a 14-player roster, Perry said he isn’t so fortunate.
“We are very young, a lot of freshmen and sophomores playing,” he said. “We are learning.”
The Rams were able to bounce back during the second half, sparked by a 3-point shot from D’Mario Weathersby to begin the third quarter.
WCCA outscored the Saints 28-16 in the second half, as Weathersby led the Rams with 25 points. R.J. Fisher added 10 points.
“We made some changes at half and started pressuring the ball. We turned the tables,” Perry said. “It was working.
“It was promising to see they were taking in everything I am teaching them. I thought they played with heart and they are getting better.”
Rodriguez said though his team was able to get the win, he would like to see the Saints (2-2) hold on to its drive.
“One of the things we keep pressing is even when we are up, we still have to move the ball and play defense,” he said. “We still need to be pressing and play hard until the end.”
TJ Peyton and Cedric Daniels added 10 points apiece for the Saints.
WCCA (girls) 60, Trinity 28
The Lady Rams kept the Lady Saints (0-4) winless this season, rolling to a 60-26 win Thursday night.
Sydney Bryant scored 17 to lead WCCA, while Lexi Freeman and Caroline Ford both had eight.
Despite the loss, Rodriguez said he is pleased with Trinty’s overall improvement.
“We took shots, and we were able to run our plays and move the ball around,” he said. We just want to keep improving every day.
“We came out playing hard, but having a young team is going to make it difficult. They fought hard.”
Trinity will be back in action Tuesday when it travels to WCCA, and the Rams will travel host Cathedral Saturday.