The balance of power in Cullman County boys basketball may have shifted on Thursday night.

Already victors over defending county champion West Point earlier this season, the youthful Cold Springs Eagles made another statement with a 76-75 double overtime victory over the Vinemont Eagles.

Matt Williams fired up a 3-pointer as time expired which bounced off the front of the rim, then the backboard and into the basket for the game winner.

In girls’ action, Cold Springs rolled over Vinemont for an 81-47 win.

• Cold Springs 76, Vinemont 75 (boys): After second half free throws helped Vinemont (8-6 overall) overcome an early 11-point deficit, the charity stripe eventually doomed the Eagles.

Jay Hembree’s 3-pointer with 2:23 left in the second overtime gave Vinemont a 73-71 lead. Following a made free throw by Corey Whittle to extend the lead to three, Joe Bryan had an opportunity to put the game away for Vinemont. But after going 8-for-8 from the charity stripe in the second half, Bryan missed both free throws, keeping the door open for Cold Springs.

Cold Springs (10-3) took advantage when Matt Williams rebounded a Jared Hogeland missed trey and put it up for a basket, cutting the lead to 74-73.

Whittle was fouled with 21.3 seconds remaining, giving Vinemont an opportunity to make it a three-point game. But after making the first foul shot, Whittle stepped over the line for a lane violation.

Hogeland had fouled out on the previous possession, leaving Cold Springs without its top shooter. But with time winding down, Williams received a pass at the top of key and fired up the last second trey for the win.

“I wanted to take the shot,” Williams said of his last second heroics. “When Jared fouled out I knew we needed someone to take the final shot and I wanted the ball in my hands. I’m just glad it went in.”

Cold Springs coach Tim Burleson said he was especially proud of Williams since the sophomore had made a poor decision two possessions earlier when he attempted an off balance shot on a drive.

“Matt stepped it up in a huge way, but that is the kind of player he is,” Burleson said. “He comes up big for us. He took a bad one a few minutes earlier, but he responded when we needed a shot.”

Williams finished with 12 points for the game, including the last five, but it was junior center Justin May who was the workhorse in overtime. May scored nine of his team-high 24 points in the extra frames, as Cold Springs kept feeding him the ball in the post.

Also scoring for Cold Springs were K.C. Dickerson with 16, Hogeland with 13, Colton Stricklin with six, Heath Fields with three, and Justin Ayers and Keith Gann with two apiece.

Bryan and Hembree had great games for Vinemont, scoring 32 and 21 points, respectively. Bryan scored 11 of his points in the fourth quarter, as the Eagles went ahead of Cold Springs 61-59 with 14.1 seconds remaining in regulation.

But Hogeland was fouled by Bryan on a drive with time winding down, sending him to the charity stripe. Hogeland sank both free throws with 2.3 seconds remaining to send the game to overtime.

Following the game, Vinemont coach Bobby Meyer was definitely frustrated with his team’s late performance from the charity stripe.

“Free throws, free throws, free throws,” Meyer said. “That’s all I’ve got to say.”

Also scoring for Vinemont were Zach South, Steven Pollard and Whittle with six a piece and Kody Martin with three.

So following victories over arguably the top two teams in the county, are the Cold Springs Eagles the team to beat?

“I wouldn’t go that far,” said a modest Burleson. “We have tremendous respect for West Point and Vinemont. I still think they are the teams to beat. But I can’t get over this team’s maturity. They are having fun and playing as a team. People thought we would be too young this year, but we are going to play hard every game. We won’t concede anything.”

* Cold Springs 81, Vinemont 47 (girls): Ninth-ranked Cold Springs jumped up to a 44-19 halftime lead to put Vinemont away early.

Tiffany Campbell scored 19 of her 21 points to get Cold Springs (10-2) off to the quick start. But it was Dusten Harbison who led the Lady Eagles in scoring with 23 points, including six 3-pointers.

“Dusten can do those types of things,” said Cold Springs coach Tammy West. “When she starts hitting shots, picks up every part of her game — defense, rebounding, assists. Natalie (Mullins) and Tiffany Campbell can’t do it alone. It’s very important for her to score.”

Natalie Mullins narrowly missed a triple-double, with 17 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds and five steals. Campbell added 12 rebounds and Harbison also snagged six boards.

Also scoring for the Lady Eagles were Jaclyn Carden with 10 points, Georgia Myrex with six, and Baileigh Davis and Jessi Harbison with two apiece.

West said she could sense a change in attitude in Thursday’s game following a brief down period after a loss to area rival Cleveland.

“I thought we played a lot better tonight,” West said. “We were a totally different team. The girls were down bad, and I was, too. It was hard to get motivated with that feeling. But I sensed something different about us tonight.”

Vinemont (4-7) was led by Brittany Speegle with 21 points and Macy Bailey with 10. Also scoring for the Lady Eagles were Molly Gallion with eight, Hannah Floyd with seven and Abi Leigeber with one.

Vinemont coach Bob Gingrich said while his team has struggled a bit this season, he is pleased with the progress they are making.

“The younger ones are getting better, but we need to play with a little more intensity,” Gingrich said. “We had some tough competition early this season, but the girls are growing through that.”

Vinemont travels to West Point on Saturday in a rematch from last Friday’s game.

Cold Springs hosts Hanceville tonight, followed by a trip to West Point on Tuesday.

“These next two weeks are going to be a challenge for us,” West said. “We’re about to see what we are made of.”