NORTHWEST REGIONAL TOURNAMENT: Willoughby, Hill lead No. 5 Lady Eagles to 39-36 victory over No. 4 Red Bay

Published 10:27 pm Thursday, February 16, 2017

HANCEVILLE — It all started with a simple plea and a big promise.

During halftime of Thursday’s game against Red Bay, longtime coach Tammy West implored her senior leader to be more aggressive.

With a determined look in her eyes, the soft-spoken Emme Willoughby happily obliged.

The Cold Springs talent secured 12 of her game-high 17 points in the second half to help the Class 2A No. 5 Blue and Gold down the fourth-ranked Lady Tigers 39-36 with an exceptional performance in the Northwest Regional Tournament at Wallace State.

Freshman Elizabeth Hill tossed in 15 points — six in the fourth quarter — while the rest of West’s team all provided their coach with a handful of meaningful plays down the stretch that she could only describe in two words.

“All heart,” she said. “I’m so proud of those girls. We made some plays that came straight from the bottom of our hearts tonight. It just can’t be coached. They hustled, they dug deep, and it showed out there. They were gritty, and they played so well in the second half.”

The two programs traded blows in the first quarter before Red Bay built an 18-9 advantage late in the second frame that had the Blue and Gold calling for a timeout.

Hill (3-pointer) and Willoughby (3-point play) helped slash the deficit to 20-15 entering halftime, but they were hardly satisfied with how the contest was trending.

“I don’t know if we came out too timid or what,” the latter said. “Maybe we didn’t want to make a mistake. We were able to get on a run there in the second half and just rode that the rest of the time.”

And what a run it was.

Willoughby had 10 points in the third stanza — six coming off crowd-pleasing hoop-and-harms — to pull her team to within just one as the final frame got underway.

The senior then let the blossoming freshman take the stage.

Hill tied the game on a free throw before gifting the Lady Eagles a 33-30 lead with a straightaway 3-pointer. Her transition buckets and relentless motor also helped Cold Springs get several easy looks at the basket.

“It was huge for us,” West said. “She got that mindset and decided to go. I saw some fire in her that I haven’t seen all year. I knew that Emme and Liz could get to the rim, because they had to stay out on our shooters. Emme came up to me and asked what we would be running. I told her, ‘No, what are you running?’ They both did a great job.”

Buckets by Hill, Willoughby and Neely Ellison helped grow the lead to six points with less than a minute remaining on the scoreboard.

Red Bay didn’t go quietly, though, as Allie Kennedy drained a 3-pointer to trim the deficit to three points. 

The Lady Eagles were able to milk the clock but couldn’t convert at the free-throw line, which gave coach Donnie Roberts’ squad one final chance to send the game into overtime.

With 3.8 seconds on the clock, the Lady Tigers were able to get off a clean look in the corner, but it didn’t come close to the net.

The ensuing reaction consisted of a deliriously happy Cold Springs group and one relieved head coach.

“We decided to leave the middle open and put two on Allie,” West said of the last shot. “We did a great job there. Down the stretch, we protected the basketball and made really good decisions. I can’t say enough about my girls tonight.”

Camryn Crider (five points) and Neely Ellison (two) rounded out the scoring but not all the production for Cold Springs.

Ellison held Kennedy, a Southern Miss signee, to just nine points on the defensive side of the ball, while Aubrey Negron had six critical rebounds, including a particularly important offense board in the fourth quarter that led to a basket.

“I’m so proud of my team,” Willoughby said. “We just want to give all the honor and glory to God. We can’t rest, though. A lot of squads come off a big win like this and have a downfall. We don’t want to do that. We have one more win to get.”

Cold Springs (28-4) will battle No. 3 Tanner (23-2) Monday at 3 p.m. for a spot in the state tournament. The Lady Rattlers easily ousted Winston County 63-31 earlier in the day.

“Our work is not over,” West said. “We’ve got a great team to play again on Monday. It’ll be as big of a challenge as tonight was for us.”

Darby Madden paced Red Bay (25-8) with 14 points, while Reagan Kuykendall had 13. 

SCOREBOARD

Class 7A Girls: Hoover 52, Bob Jones 42; Sparkman 77, Tuscaloosa Co. 37

Class 7A Boys: Hoover 62, Sparkman 50; Vestavia Hills 58, Bob Jones 43

Class 2A Girls: Cold Springs 39, Red Bay 36; Tanner 63, Winston County 31

Class 2A Boys: Sheffield 44, Altamont 40; Cleveland 60, Tanner 59