Timely plays lifts East over Southeast

Standing still while Israel Barnes barrels straight toward you is not fun, East senior Zion Fralin can confirm.

“He’s a big dude, so most people might be afraid,” Fralin said. “But I don’t fear anyone but the Lord. I had to take that charge for my team.”

It was timely plays like Fralin sliding in front of Barnes to take a charge late in the fourth quarter that added up to a 65-61 victory for East over Southeast on Friday night. Both teams are 1-1.

Another crucial play in the final minute occurred after East had missed the front-end of its one-and-one free throw attempt and Southeast had an inbounds play under East’s goal with 12 seconds left. East was confused from the get-go, as Southeast’s four players stacked along the right side of the lane broke apart and Tarik Adkins was left standing wide open under the basket.

Jaylen Randle was standing five feet back watching the play unfold when the pass was sent Adkins’ way, but with his quickness and length he was able to swat the ball away as Adkins went up for what looked to be a sure-fire game-tying layup. East recovered the loose ball and made two free throws at the other end to secure the win.

“We did horrible with the rotation, so I had to hurry up and try to get a block or something to make up for it,” Randle said. “I had to help my team out some way.”

It was a hectic finish to a hectic game, a pace created by East’s full-court trapping press.

Southeast struggled with turnovers, committed 19, and also running through its sets. Too often it relied on Barnes, who scored 25 points on 7 of 16 shooting, to rescue it from standing around.

The Buffaloes also didn’t have their steady diet of three-pointers, making just 1 of 11 in the game. That made it all the more impressive that Southeast had actually rallied to take a lead late in the third quarter.

But a mini 5-0 run from Elijah Kelly — a corner three, then a run-out and slam dunk — to end the third quarter put East ahead 53-47 going into the final eight minutes, a lead that it never relinquished.

A pair of free throws by Fralin gave East a 63-59 lead, then Fralin took his third charge of the game on the other end on Barnes. But East would turn the ball over and Johnny Murdock (11 points) would make two free throws for Southeast to close the lead to 63-61 with 37 seconds left to play.

East would miss another free throw, giving Southeast a chance for the tie. The ball was funneled into Barnes on the right block and his 15-foot jumper bounced off the front rim and went out of bounds to Southeast.

That’s when Randle made his game-saving swipe and East registered its first win of the season after a stunning loss at home to North on Tuesday.

“My dream has always been to beat Southeast,” Howard said. “I feel like this is the start of our comeback.”

Michael McKinney and Fralin both scored 15 points for East, which used three new starters from its game on Tuesday.

“That was something that was earned by those new guys and I think it also woke up a couple of those guys who were starting,” East coach Joe Jackson said. “We got better effort all across the board tonight. We had 10, maybe 11 guys tonight play at a high level. It was a true team effort.”

This story was originally published December 9, 2016 at 10:31 PM with the headline "Timely plays lifts East over Southeast."