Looking to bounce back from a loss to 13th-District foe Russellville on Friday, the Todd County Central Rebels tried their hand at competition from out of state on Tuesday. However, the result was the same, with Jayden Caira pouring in 25 points to send Jo Byrns past the Rebels 59-44.
Caira’s second 3-pointer of the first quarter gave Jo Bryns a 12-2 lead, but the Rebels pulled back within 5 after three-straight buckets by Preston Moore. Logan Head knocked down a 3-pointer for the Red Devils, and Todd Central’s Anthony Johnson answered with a basket for a 15-10 Jo Byrns lead after one.
Moore opened the second frame with a jumper to trim to Red Devil lead to 3, but that would be as close as the Rebels would get the rest of the way. Caira kept the hot hand for Jo Byrns with 8 more points, including a pair of 3-pointers to force a Rebel timeout with a 24-12 score.
Jacob Brandon found the range for the Rebels and canned a pair of 3-pointers to slice the Red Devil lead to 6 with 1:48 to play in the half, but Jo Byns restored the double-digit lead when Jacob Miller scored down low ahead of the horn.
Amari Andrews scored 4 points in the paint for the Rebels to force a Jo Byrns timeout early in the third, but Ryan Dowlen drilled a 3 out of the break to put the Red Devils up 40-29. The teams traded baskets over the remainder of the quarter, including a 3-pointer and a putback by Moore, but the Rebels still trailed by 11 at the end of the frame.
The Rebels had one run left in them and only trailed 46-39 after baskets by Johnson and Andrews, but Caira took over to seal the win for Jo Byrns. He scored on a drive and a putback before converting an and-1 to close the door on the Rebels and give the Red Devils their biggest lead of the night at 53-39 with 2:30 to play.
Todd Central will jump back into district play on Friday when they travel to Russellville to face Logan County. The Cougars have had the upper hand in the series lately with a seven-game win streak.
Jo Byrns 15 17 14 13 — 59
Todd Central 10 12 13 9 — 44
Jo Byrns (8-1) — Caira 25, Dowlen 10, Cox 9, Miller 8, Head 7
Todd Central (0-5) — Moore 12, Rager 10, Brandon 9, Johnson 7, Andrews 6
