By T. Scott Boatright
Whenever Simsboro and Choudrant get together on a basketball court or ballfield, it always turns out special.
Tuesday’s season opener for both turned out to be just that, with a playoff atmosphere and packed house as Simsboro played its first game in its recently renovated gym.
And the Tigers held on for an 86-72 win their home opener, despite the Aggies rallying from double-digit deficits more than once.
The final 4:35 was a microcosm of the game.
Simsboro led 70-60 with 4:34 remaining before the Aggies did a defensive not so fast routine, chipping away at the Simsboro lead before cutting it down to one point at 73-72 with 1:42 remaining on a Carson Carrico shot from underneath the basket.
That was before Simsboro’s Ahmad Smith stepped on the gas, scoring on a short jumper, a long-range jumper and a 3-pointer to push the Tigers back out to an eight-point advantage only a minute later.
Simsboro added six points in the final 40.6 seconds on a Smith layup, a pair of free throws by Jakaleb Modest and a Smith steal and layup at the final buzzer.
Smith remained facedown on the court on that final play before eventually being helped off the court, but after the game SHS coach Adam Wodach said he hoped it wasn’t a major injury.
“I think it’ll be OK,” Wodach said. “I don’t want to speak as to what I think it is, I’m guessing at this point, but I think he’ll be all right. First game of the year, conditioning-wise isn’t the same, but I think he’ll be all right.”
Smith finished with 29 points on the night, but it was a 39-point performance from Simsboro’s Jakaleb Modest that seemed to spark the Tigers down the stretch.
“That was an amazing game,” Wodach said. “Credit to Choudrant. They’ve improved tremendously from last year. I think our biggest improvement is our ability to run our offense in big moments. When we needed buckets, we relied on our structure instead of getting out of control. I’m just super proud of the way we stayed together emotionally, mentally, physically — it was just a battle for both teams. Great game by both teams.”
Simsboro’s first double-digit lead came late in the first quarter as they moved on top 19-8 on a Modest steal and layup with 1:39 remaining in the opening stanza.
And the Tigers roared to their biggest lead of the game at that point as Modest hit the final basket of the first quarter with a 3-pointer with 19 seconds left on the clock.
Simsboro moved out in front by as many as 14 points at 26-12 early in the second quarter before Choudrant slowly started chipping away at the lead.
The Aggies’ Jackson Ambrose made a layup at the buzzer off a steal that cut the Simsboro lead to three points at 35-32 at halftime.
And the Aggies managed to move on top 40-39 on a short jumper by Carrico at the 5:29 mark of the third quarter before the Tigers finally regained the lead for good.
“It felt like every time (Choudrant) scored, it was like the world was ending for our team and I was just begging them to get the ball out and go,” Woodach said. “Once Jakaleb and everybody started getting into transition (offense). Ahmad and Jakaleb played great, but we had two players in TJ (Holland) and Mike (Smith) in foul trouble and Jamarcus (Goodrum) came off the bench and stepped up for us — gave us electric energy defending Carson (Carrico).
“Landry (Roberts) hit some big buckets (and finished with eight points),” Wodach said. “It was just a complete team effort. I don’t think we’re pleased with our full 32 minutes, but good teams find ways to win even when not playing well.”
Carrico finished with 18 points to lead the Aggies while Benton Case added 14, Brayden Pye hit for 12 and Ambrose chipped in with 11.
“What an awesome way to start the season,” said Aggies coach Ryan Smith. “I genuinely believe this is one of the bigger games in the state this season to start the season. We just love these bigger moments, and the community of Simsboro is so passionate about basketball — they fill the gym. It felt like a playoff game.”
Smith said he got what he wanted to get out the game — seeing where his team stands to start things off.
“That’s what you ask for early in the season — things to come back the next day and really work on in practice,” Smith said. “And there was a ton of stuff. I thought we handled the ball well. We didn’t turn it over a lot.
“We’ve got to get some defensive stops. We’ve got to keep communicating on defense. They had some leakouts and stuff where we didn’t get matched up in transition. But being able to get that on film and really hone in on those things I think will make us great going into our tournament the rest of this week.”
