In a roller coaster basketball game of runs, Good Hope used their own runs in the 1st and 3rd quarter to give themselves a cushion to cruise to a 64-49 home win over their area rival, Oneonta, to stay alive in the hunt for hosting rights in the area tournament.
If you’ve followed Good Hope boys basketball in recent years, then you would know how the many battles with Oneonta often have went: Oneonta jumps to a quick lead, and Good Hope fights back for an instant classic. This edition of the rivalry started much differently. Star senior Tanner Malin opened the game with back to back 3’s, followed by a Colten Lindsey 3 to give Good Hope a quick 9-0 lead just a couple of minutes into the game. After going one for two at the line, Malin got himself into foul trouble with the Raiders up 10-0.
The offense would go cold for much of the rest of the first quarter, and the second quarter Oneonta used several offensive rebounds to get Lindsey into foul trouble as well. Despite everything, Good Hope found itself up 17-4, but without Malin and Lindsey on the floor, Oneonta went on an 11-0 run to bring it to a one-point game with just a couple of minutes to go. Going back and forth the rest of the first half, Good Hope went into the half up 21-20.
For most teams, that kind of momentum swing can be a devastating blow, but for a team that’s been battle-tested, they’re not easily rattled. The Raiders came out of the half, and with Malin, back in the game, he took over. He opened the 3rd quarter with a 9-0 run of his own that gave Good Hope a cushion they wouldn’t lose. Several other Raiders would get buckets in the 3rd, including Lindsey, Kmal Bell, Weston Hancock, and Charlie O’Neil. The group effort after Malin’s strong start outscored the Redskins 26-7 in the period.
Oneonta made one last push to open the 4th quarter hitting two quick 3’s and then got Malin to pick up a fourth foul that sent him to the bench with just under seven to play. Freshman Konnor Stevens played huge minutes while Malin was on the bench keeping the offense flowing. Bell would take over the scoring load and finish with 8 points in the 4th to keep Good Hope up comfortably on its way to the 64-49 win. Malin finished with a game-high 22 points. Bell and Lindsey had 14 and 12 a piece.
Raiders head coach Drew Adams had this to say on his team’s big win, “It wasn’t always pretty tonight, sure, but what I saw tonight was a team that has faced adversity and was ready for the moment. I love the way they got after it and battled even when Oneonta went on a couple of runs.”
“This was a big and necessary win tonight in terms of our area, but we know what we need to focus on is what we can control, and that’s trying to go 4-2 in our area. Tonight, they took another step towards that. I’m super proud of them.”
With the win, it sets up some late-season drama in the area. Hanceville will travel to Oneonta after knocking the Redskins off 64-62 in overtime at home. If the Bulldogs don’t get the win, then Good Hope will have a chance to force a three-way tie for first place in the area, which will be decided by a coin flip. While the Raiders need a little help, Hanceville controls their own destiny, needing only one more area win to clinch the area.
Good Hope improves to 11-9 on the season and will have six days of rest before their big area matchup on the road against 4A No. 6 Hanceville this upcoming Thursday at 7 pm inside Lane Horton Gymnasium.
VARSITY GIRLS
The Good Hope Varsity Girls extended its win streak to seven with a wire-to-wire win over the Lady Redskins 53-39. The Lady Raiders overcame a slow start in the first quarter with an aggressive full-court press in the 2nd and 3rd that proved too much for Oneonta.
Good Hope’s sophomore trio Heather and Bailey Tetro and Ivey Mattox controlled the game, with Mattox scoring a game-high 19 points, while the Tetro twins frustrated the Lady Redskin offense all night long. Oneonta’s 6’4″ center Ja’nya Polk made things hard in the paint and forced Good Hope to knock out several perimeter shots. Still, they responded to the challenge with quick ball movement finding several open looks throughout the night. Charly Johnson and Hailey Tetro each finished with 8 points on the night.
They improved to 19-3 on the season (5-0 in area) and look to take on Scottsboro and Hanceville before switching their focus to the County Tournament, where they will look to avenge a loss to the Fairview Lady Aggies.
