West rallies in second half, ends losing streak to Bearden, 58-47

@font-face { font-family: "Calibri"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 10pt; line-height: 115%; font-size: 11pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }p { margin: 12pt 0in; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Bearden’s inexperience showed in the second half on Friday night in a 58-47 loss to cross town rival West, ending the Rebels’ three-game losing streak to the Bulldogs. “We played a tough game against them,” Bearden forward Jordan Wall said. “They’re a great team. They’re fast, but they’re beatable.” Bearden (7-5, 2-1) led for most of the first half with solid defense, leading 24-21 at halftime. However, in the second half, the tempo picked up and the Rebels took control of due to Bulldog turnovers. “We have to play better defense, get the ball down the court, and have less turnovers,” senior Drew Standifer said. Standifer led Bearden in scoring with 17 points; Daquan Wright and Wall each added seven. “Drew had a good first half,” Bearden Coach Mark Blevins said. “He wore out in the second half.” Senior Calvin Walker led the Rebels in scoring with 19 points accompanied by Jaywaun Mitchell, who contributed 15. Although Bearden struggled protecting the ball on Friday, their solid first half defense was able to keep West from getting an early lead. “Towards the end of the game I started scoring a little more, and we did a better job of holding down the turnovers,” Standifer said. “We just couldn’t play any defense.” The Bulldogs’ chance to avenge Friday night’s loss against the Rebels will come on Jan. 24. Lady Bulldogs 47, West 31: Bearden continued its hot start to the season Friday night, in another game without sophomore Tyler Carter. The Lady Bulldog defense only gave up 14 points in the first half and 31 on the night, which proved to be the difference in a night where points were hard to come by. Senior captain Cozette Gaspard led the Lady Dogs in scoring with 11. Senior captain Jai Jai McLaughlin had eight. The Lady Bulldogs (10-1, 4-0) look forward to their next district game against regional power Maryville on Tuesday.