ORRVILLE — Playing in front of their peers, the Keith Bears’ middle school team (3-6) appeared a bit nervous in the first half of Thursday’s in-school game against Tipton-Durant.

At halftime, all of those butterflies must’ve gone out the window.

DeCarlos Moore scored six third quarter points, including a 3-pointer and a coast-to-coast layup, to help Keith pull away from Tipton (7-5) in a 28-21 win.

The game started at 1 p.m. and served as an in-school game for the Bears. It was also their season finale.

“With some of them being young, playing in front of the school can make them nervous,” said Keith coach Clifton Reeves. “But they came in, they played well and I’m proud of them.”

The Bears trailed 12-9 at halftime, but Moore’s layup to begin the second half quickly closed the gap to one. A layup by Ayarvon Jones put Keith up for the first time since the first quarter.

Tipton tied the game at 14-14 on a jump shot by Tony Sullivan, but the Blue Devils wouldn’t be able to stay close.

Jared Edwards and Moore knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to push the Keith advantage to 21-15 after three quarters.

In the final period, Tipton got as close as four on a floating shot by Demarcus Tyre, but Keith answered with a layup by Markeis Cole.

“We didn’t maintain mentally and that’s what it came down to and it only added to the effort factor,” said Tipton coach Courvoisea Fails. “Effort, mental toughness and mental focus — we kind of dropped the ball there.”

Fails said playing on the road, in front of a big crowd is good experience for his team as they get ready to play at the high school level.

“My job at the middle school level is to prepare them as much as possible for high school,” Fails said. “I’m giving them game like situations that simulate the most game-like situations to prepare them for the high school level. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

Edwards led all scorers with 10 points for the Bears. Jones also added six points for Keith.

Tyre, Chavantis Sanders, Jamere Williams and Tony Sullivan led Tipton in scoring with four points each.

Keith’s season is over, but Tipton will play its home finale Tuesday against Lowndes.

 

Tipton 18, Keith 13 (Girls)

Kylan Brown scored a game high 10 points and led Tipton-Durant (9-4) past Keith (1-8) 18-13 Thursday in an in-school basketball game.

Brown made a 3-pointers to put the Blue Devils up 11-2 in the second quarter and then chipped in two layups in the third quarter to help extend the lead to 17-5. She also threw down court to Shamya Green for an open layup.

“She does it all. She handles the ball, she runs the offense,” said Tipton coach Leonard Jones. “Everything I need, I call on her and she’s always there.”

After being down double digits most of the second half, Keith made it interesting in the fourth quarter. Keyonna Atkins made a shot and was fouled with just over a minute to play to pull the Bears to within 18-13.

The Bears were unable to get any closer in the final minute.

“We were in the bonus the whole first half and we had three points,” said Keith coach Cecil Williams. “We went to the line six or seven times, so that was the difference in the game. A lot of games, middle school and high school, are lost at the free throw line.”

Daryeay Moorer, Kimeesha Rodgers, Shamya Green and Jasmine Richardson each scored a basket for Tipton.

Jada Johnson led Keith with five points.