Mona Moore, Luverne Journal

Florala’s basketball season came to a close Tuesday night with a 70-37 loss against Brantley.

“I commend these guys on the effort they put in tonight,” said head coach Troy Stewart. “They played hard and followed the game plan. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to keep up with Brantley.”

The teams were within two points of each other after the first quarter, but Florala lost its wind by the end of the first half. They came back strong in the third quarter, adding 14 points to their total. But, the final quarter was a repeat of quarter two, with only two players scoring six points between them.

Stewart said a shallow bench has plagued the Wildcats all season. He brought seven varsity and two junior varsity players to the area tournament.

“We haven’t won a game,” Stewart said. “Despite that, they played with intensity and didn’t put any player ahead of the other.”

He cited senior Logan Ansley as an example.

“Logan has had a hurt ankle all year, but he’s played really well on defense. He kept his hands up at all times,” Stewart said. “And our other senior, Ray Hall, was a great player all season. He really stepped up.”

Hall led the Wildcats with 15 points against Brantley.

Stewart credited Brantley for having a well-coached and athletic team. Leading Brantley was Darian Jones with 17 points.