SWEET REVENGE: Hot shooting lifts Andalusia to area championship against Geneva

Published 1:00 pm Wednesday, February 7, 2024

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Andalusia wanted revenge from a season ago and received exactly that with a 63-46 win over Geneva in the 4A Area 3 boys’ championship game on Tuesday, Feb. 6.

Tyler Sigers slips past Geneva’s Landon Williams during a drive to the basket. Sigers finished with 10 points for Andalusia and was named the tournament MVP.

The Bulldogs rolled to their 11th win in the last 12 games and improved to 20-8 overall. The Panthers dropped to 21-9 with the loss.

“The guys did a great job tonight. They came and took care of business from the opening tip. It was a total team effort, and we won on both ends of the floor as well. I’m really proud of all our guys who have been preparing themselves for this day since last year when they lost to Geneva. Being able to return the favor was pretty sweet,” AHS Head Coach Marcus Mickles said.

Tyler Sigers began the scoring with a drive to the hoop before John Bynum knocked down a triple. Sigers followed with a three and a jumper as Andalusia built a four-point lead. Landon Williams cut the deficit back to two at 7-5 with 4:27 left in the frame. Calvin Daniel responded with a layup, and Evan Griffin added a bucket. Tevin Sigers and Cadariyus Love buried back-to-back threes for a 15-7 margin at the 3:23 mark. Tevin Sigers stayed hot with two long threes, while Bynum scored five down the stretch. Cayden Weeks went two-for-two at the line as Geneva trailed 21-16 after one.

Kam Weaver soars to the net for two of his six points as Cayden Weeks defends the play.

The Bulldogs opened the second period with seven straight points including threes from Tevin Sigers and Love. Ja’carious Threat sliced the deficit to 29-19, and Kam Weaver answered back with a basket. Jordan Stallworth went off the glass for two and pushed the lead to 33-19 with 3:05 remaining in the first half. Weeks added a late bucket, while Titus Brown drained a three and drew the Panthers within 35-24 at halftime.

Andalusia grabbed the upper hand with four points from Weaver and two by Hudson Kelley early in the third. Williams followed with a three, but Stallworth scored the next four points for a 45-29 lead with 3:28 to go in the period. Griffin hit a free throw for Geneva, but Noah Curry earned five including a triple as the lead swelled to 50-30 after three.

Love led off the final period with two buckets, and Xavier Hourel also found the hoop. Griffin scored five and took the score to 56-36 with 5:55 remaining in the game. Curry responded with a jumper, and Weeks converted a three-point play. Kelley notched four more and gave the Bulldogs a 62-42 advantage off a layup with 2:24 left. Griffin had the final four points of the game for the Panthers.

The Bulldogs’ Jordan Stallworth, middle, along with the Panthers’ Kingston Tolbert, left, and John Bynum battle for a rebound in the third period.

Tevin Sigers and Love paced Andalusia with 12 points each. Tyler Sigers was named tournament MVP and posted 10 points, while Curry garnered seven. Stallworth, Weaver, and Kelley each had six. Griffin led Geneva with 12 points as Bynum and Weeks contributed eight and seven, respectively.

The Bulldogs finished with seven three-pointers in the game, while the Panthers tallied six.

“This win means a lot because we lost to Geneva last year. We changed our mindset for this year to stay positive and locked in at practice in order to beat them. We had to stay focused unlike last year when we lost in the third quarter. We put our foot down and kept pushing to win the area championship,” Tyler Sigers said.

Andalusia will host a sub-regional contest against the Area 1 runner-up on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 6 p.m.