Jon Ginn puts trust on his assistants throughout his years and it usually makes his teams stronger and that trust is for situations exactly like East Webster finds itself in closing out 2020.
Due to contact tracing, Ginn had to sit out the last two games for both the boys and girls team and left it up to girls assistant Courtney O’Briant and first-year boys assistant Hunter Mason.
“I’ve enjoyed the opportunity, I really have, but it’s different without coach Ginn here. I hate it that he’s not here and I wish he was,” Mason said. “I feel like the guys feel like they have to step up their play a little bit because coach Ginn is not here and we have to make him proud.”
Ginn did coach earlier last week against Ethel on Tuesday and the two teams went through an overtime thriller that led to the Wolverines coming out on top 53-45. It was a close game from start to finish and neither team gave in through the first four quarters. The Wolverines trailed 45-43 with 20 seconds left in regulation when Reid Gatlin got a steal and score to tie the game and ultimately send it to overtime.
It was in overtime where the Wolverines outscored the Tigers 8-0 for the win. EWHS had to fight through a 1-for-11 night from 3-point range in the win and Gatlin had 17 points to lead the way while Chandler Hodges scored 13 and had 14 rebounds.
In the first game without Ginn, Mason led the Wolverines against quite possibly the toughest opponent of the season at No. 1 Class 2Ateam New Site. The Wolverines fell behind 25-13 in the first half and 45-23after three quarters as the home team was able to end the Wolverines’ streak of five-straight wins, 71-52.
The Wolverines shot just 31% from the field but hit 7-of-193-pointers in the game. The big issue was New Site’s work in the paint as the home team outscored the Wolverines 40-12 and out-rebounded them 40-23. Blake Slay finished the game with 13 points and Gatlin and Cael Chrismond had 11 each.
The Wolverines capped the week with a big win over Starkville Academy as they pulled out a 51-47 win at home. Down 45-42 with 2:30 left Gatlin hit a 3-pointer to tie the game up at 45. The Wolverines closed the game with a9-2 run to come out on top.
Blake Slay was the leading scorer in the game with 13 points while Gatlin and Chandler Hodges had 10 points each.
The girls team went through the same results last week as well as they beat Ethel and lost to New Site.
The first game of the week at Ethel was much smoother than later that week as the Lady Wolverines dominated in a 50-27 win. Whitney Winter finished with 17 points and Shan Culpepper had 12 points and dominated the boards with 21 rebounds. Meri-Grace Gregg had 10 points in the game.
Against New Site, the Lady Wolverines struggled mightily on the offensive end as they scored zero points in the first quarter and just four points in the entire half as New Site ran away with a 61-14 victory. Leading scorers Gregg and Winter had no points in the game and were a combined 0-for-17 from the field as New Site put the clamps down defensively. Da’nasia Logan le the team with five points.
In her second game in the big chair, O’Briant liked a lot more of what she saw against Starkville Academy on Monday this week. The Lady Wolverines came up short in a 59-56 affair but they fought against a good team and had their chances down the stretch.
“It was a good game I just hate to lose,” O’Briant said. “The New Site game just is what it is. They’re a great team and we didn’t play well enough so we got beat. It hurt to lose (vs. Starkville Academy) because it feltlike we were right there. But it’s been fun coaching the girls. It hasn’t felt any different I’m just standing up more. I already yell a lot.”
Culpepper had 22 points in defeat and Winter had 17.
Both teams were to play again on Tuesday night against Pisgah to finish out 2020.
