JACKSONVILLE — In the words of Jacksonville coach Tres Buzan, “Once the iron got hot, we took off from there.”
The top-seeded Golden Eagles took off like a rocket ship in the second half, leaving fifth-seeded Piedmont in the dust in an 81-59 victory Thursday night in the semifinals of the Calhoun County tournament. Jacksonville will face second-seeded Oxford in Friday’s 8 p.m. championship game.
After being ice cold from 3-point range in the first half, Cam Johnson got the Golden Eagles going, splashing home his first trey of the game in the third quarter, and off the Golden Eagles went.
Johnson would make two more from beyond the arc before quarter’s end, and Jacksonville closed the period on a 15-2 run to take a commanding 58-45 lead.
“He came out and kind of got it sparked for us. Cam, look, you better not let Cam see one go in the net,” Buzan said. “That’s the thing. If he misses six in a row, it’s really irrelevant to him. He doesn’t care. He’s a true shooter. He’s going to keep shooting, and once he sees one go in, look out.”
Johnson knocked down all three of his free-throw attempts after he was fouled on a 3-point attempt to open the fourth quarter. His dunk later in the period gave him 14 points for the game, all coming in the final two periods.
Johnson’s twin brother, Caden, did plenty of second-half damage as well. He scored 14 of his 22 points after halftime.
John Broom did his part, too, finishing with a game-high 26 points and eight rebounds.
“They played fantastic. I'm not going to lie,” Broom said when asked about the Johnson twins after the game. “They gave a lot of energy. We all took turns guarding Alex Odam. He’s a fantastic player. I just love how they played.”
Odam and the Bulldogs went toe-to-toe with Jacksonville in the first half. The Jacksonville State signee scored 13 of his team-high 23 points in the game’s first 16 minutes, and Piemont headed to the locker room with a 34-32 lead.
Despite poor shooting 3-point range, Jacksonville was able to stay within striking distance thanks to 13 first-half points from Broom and nine from Devin Barksdale.
“We usually shoot the ball well, but you know, when you’re cold you have to find other ways to get it done, and I thought the guys did a good job of that," Buzan said. "Devin got some points in the paint. John did a really good job attacking the rim.
“I felt like we took a really good punch from them early. Odam was hitting some tough shots and they were scoring. We found a way to only be down by two at halftime.”
Once the shots started dropping in the second half, it was off to the races for the Golden Eagles.
“We can get hot at the drop of a hat,” Buzan said. “We can be cold, and it can all flip really quick.”
Barksdale finished the contest with 14 points and a team-high three assists.
Odam led Piedmont with seven rebounds and six assists. The only other Bulldog in double figures was Ish Bethel, who finished with 14 points. Rollie Pinto chipped in with nine points.
The championship game against Oxford will be a rematch of last year’s final, which Jacksonville lost 64-62.
“We want it really bad, and we’re excited to play them again,” Broom said. “It should be a good game.”
Calhoun County basketball tournament scores, schedule
At Pete Mathews Coliseum
GIRLS
Jan. 13
No. 6 Jacksonville 67, No. 11 Faith Christian 25
Jan. 16, Monday
No. 7 Pleasant Valley 53, No. 10 Weaver 32
No. 9 White Plains 60, No. 8 Jacksonville Christian 52
No. 4 Piedmont 41, No. 13 Wellborn 24
No. 5 Alexandria 57, No. 12 Saks 18
Jan. 17, Tuesday
No. 2 Anniston 53, No. 7 Pleasant Valley 32
No. 1 Oxford 59, No. 9 White Plains 20
Jan. 18, Wednesday
No. 3 Ohatchee 64, No. 6 Jacksonville 53
No. 5 Alexandria 48, No. 4 Piedmont 41
Jan. 19, Thursday
Semifinal: No. 2 Anniston 50, No. 3 Ohatchee 45
Semifinal: No. 1 Oxford 69, No. 5 Alexandria 31
Jan. 20, Friday
Final: No. 2 Anniston vs. No. 1 Oxford, 6 p.m.
BOYS
Jan. 13
No. 11 Jacksonville Christian 70, No. 14 Wellborn 31
No. 13 Pleasant Valley 67, No. 12 Ohatchee 63
Jan. 16, Monday
No. 7 Faith Christian 65, No. 10 Donoho 50
No. 8 Saks 44, No. 9 Weaver 30
No. 6 White Plains 71, No. 11 Jacksonville Christian 45
No. 5 Piedmont 73, No. 13 Pleasant Valley 50
Jan. 17, Tuesday
No. 2 Oxford 55, No. 7 Faith Christian 49
No. 1 Jacksonville 86, No. 8 Saks 39
Jan. 18, Wednesday
No. 3 Alexandria 66, No. 6 White Plains 63
No. 5 Piedmont 66, No. 4 Anniston 53
Jan. 19, Thursday
Semifinal: No. 2 Oxford 52, No. 3 Alexandria 37
Semifinal: No. 1 Jacksonville 81, No. 5 Piedmont 59
Jan. 20, Friday
Final: No. 2 Oxford vs. No. 1 Jacksonville, 8 p.m.