GAINESVILLE — When Gainesville and Apalachee tipped it off Friday night, it was an all-out fight to the finish.
The Red Elephants (10-12, 6-2 Region 8-6A) were able to hold off every Apalachee (4-16, 0-8 Region 8-6A) run, behind a solid team effort and a hot-handed Eli Pitts in a 71-59 win over the Wildcats on Senior Night at the Gainesville High Gym.
The first quarter, however, had a lot of wow in it. The two region foes combined for 53 points with Gainesville taking a 27-26 advantage when the horn sounded.
"Both teams came out on their A-game," Graham said. "We were hitting shots. They were hitting shots. Stops were hard to come by in the first quarter. We had some guys step up offensively, and we found some offense."
Pitts, who poured in a team-high 18 points, was key in the offensive explosion in the first quarter. The junior guard scored the team's first 8 points, including six from the 3-point line -- half of his point came from the arc.
"Eli is growing up before our eyes," Graham said. "He's playing with control and with a lot of confidence. He shot the ball extremely well from three, but I'm more impressed with his driving ability and his ability to find teammates in traffic. He made a couple of big-time, high-level passes. If he continues that path, he's going to be special."
Senior Lavoy Hill had a big night on his final regular-season home game for Big Red, turning in 10 points and three big blocks.
But the second quarter wasn't as flashy, and the offense basically died for both teams. Gainesville scored 9 and Apalachee had 7 -- a stark contrast from the opening quarter and a product of such a fast and furious first quarter.
The second half saw each team make runs.
Gainesville pushed up the lead to 10 points -- the largest of the game -- off a Donsha Gaither 3-pointer with 5:02 to go in the third and extended it to 12 points on the next possession with a Hill put-back layup with 4:50 to go.
Apalachee fired back, behind Jamonte Wallace (19 points), with a 10-2 spurt over the next 2 minutes. Wallace scored 8 points in the third quarter, helping the Wildcats cut the lead to four points, 47-43, late in the quarter.
The rush continued in the final period as Brayson Hayes (16 points) nailed two 3-pointers in another comeback try by the Wildcats.
The Red Elephants, however, found some control late in the quarter and hit 8-of-12 foul shots to put the game out of reach.
"They have guys that can make shots," Graham said. "So I was not comfortable till the final horn sounded. I did feel like with about 4 minutes left that we were in a good position. Free throws have been our weak point this season, and we were able to knock a couple down. It was a total team effort and we played with a lot of energy tonight."
Gainesville had nine players score. Dee Buffington, Dylan Bobga and Robert Reisman knocked down 8 points each, while Donsha Gaither and Ced Nicely had 6 apiece. Nicely was a perfect 4-of-4 from the foul line.
The Red Elephants finish the regular season on the road next week at Winder-Barrow on Tuesday and at Lanier on Friday.
"I love our effort on the road," Graham said. "I like us on the road. I think our game and identity are built for road games. Now, we just have to take that execution and energy to another level and see what happens."
GAINESVILLE GIRLS 73,
APALACHEE 47
The Lady Red Elephants (8-14, 3-5 Region 8-6A) exploded for a combined 53 points in the second and third quarters to blow open the game and beat Apalachee (2-21, 0-8 Region 8-6A) on Friday.
It was a slow start in the first quarter, which ended with the game tied, 8-8, but the Lady Red Elephants turned up the defensive pressure, forcing 28 turnovers, and roared out to a 36-16 halftime lead.
Zaria Williams led Gainesville with a team-high 14 points, while Lauren Teasley chipped in 12. Williams and Teasley scored 8 of their points in the 28-point second quarter.
In total, 11 players scored for Gainesville, including Sadie Roach and Ariah Jeffers with 9 points each and Jada Rucker with 8.
The Lady Red Elephants upped their lead, 63-33, by the end of the third quarter with sophomore Amayah Topps banging two 3-pointers through the basket. She finished with 6 points.
Jasmine Williams led the Lady Wildcats with a game-high 21 points.
