FALKVILLE, Ala.- The 21-1 Cold Springs Eagles traveled 35 miles north to face the 14-6 Falkville Blue Devils on Friday night. The first half had all the makings of an Eagles blowout, but their sails lost wind after an injury to Breydon Hallmon at the start of the third quarter. Within minutes, their lead had collapsed and despite an electric fourth quarter, the Eagles went down, 52-45.
Hallmon, the Eagles 6-7 center, had Cold Springs firing on all cylinders in the first half. The game opened with a Cash Dickerson three, which would kick off an 11-0 start for the Eagles. Hallmon’s six points, seven rebounds, three blocks and two first quarter steals drove a 15-2 first quarter that saw the Blue Devils completely devoid of life. Their only basket came on a layup from forward Zac Jackson, a long, rangy forward who would go on to lead the night in points.
The second quarter was much of the same from Cold Springs. In one play, Hallmon blocked Jackson’s shot, grabbed the rebound and slung a dime downcourt to Ayden Black who put in a layup to go up 19-5. While the Eagles didn’t waver, Falkville did begin to get shots to fall. They resorted to outside looks often due to the Eagles’ stellar perimeter defense, but got a couple threes by Eli Harris and Landon Fields to fall to open the quarter. The pick-and-roll combo of Black and Hallmon for Cold Springs is a key driver on both sides of the court, and they both put on a show in the second quarter. Before halftime, Black picked off a pass and took it coast to coast for a gliding layup. The Eagles were up big, 33-16 at the break, but the Blue Devils were just beginning to show some rhythm.
Opening the second half, Jackson got a quick layup in for Falkville. Then, after a missed shot, both bigs went up for a rebound, with Hallmon landing awkwardly and going down. The severity of his injury is unclear, but he walked off the court with help and sat the rest of the game. Taking advantage of this was the Blue Devils, who rode a shooting streak and a pair of Harris threes to a 12-0 start to the half to bring them back within five for the first time since the opening moments of the game. What was just looking like a potential blowout turned into a hotly contested matchup between the highly regarded 2A squads. Hallmon’s absence seemed to suck the life out of Cold Springs’ offense, who, without their paint presence, didn’t find much success cutting or shooting from outside. Instead, Jackson became the force in the paint in the second half, swatting shots and deterring Eagles’ ball handlers from entering the paint. Falkville’s big third quarter would end with a 14-3 advantage and brought them within six going into the fourth, only down 36-30.
A 10-2 run would put the Blue Devils ahead 40-38 early in the fourth, capped off by a CJ Jackson triple that sent Falkville’s fans into a frenzy. Black and Cold Springs’ Ethan Day showed determination to hold on for a tough win, with Black hitting a pair of free throws and a three. Jackson responded in the best way a basketball player can in a tight game, breaking open on a fast break for a two-handed slam. While a pair of Day baskets would bring Cold Springs back within three, another Jackson lay and free throws by Cayden Butler and Harris would seal the upset win for Falkville.
Leading the game in scoring was Falkville’s Jackson, who scored 22 points and added eight rebounds, an assist and four blocks. Harris was all buckets on the night, recording 11 points, and Butler put up nine points and a pair of steals.
For Cold Springs, despite only playing basically the first half, Hallmon recorded nine points, seven rebounds, an assist, three blocks and one steal. Leading the charge in the second half, Black ended up leading Cold Springs in scoring with 13 points, two rebounds and a steal.
Cold Springs will take on Hamilton on Monday night, and then await the winner of West Point vs. Holly Pond in round two of the Cullman County Tournament next Friday.
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