CLASS 5A REGIONAL BOYS: Marbury cruises past Central-Clay County; Sylacauga dominates Elmore County

Marbury’s Jamar Brown goes up for a layup in the Bulldogs’ win on Thursday at Alabama State’s Acadome (Tim Gayle

By TIM GAYLE

The folks are a little friendlier at the Piggly Wiggly when Marbury boys basketball coach William Turner drives by these days.

Marbury defeated Central-Clay County 66-53 in the 5A Central Regional semifinals at Alabama State’s Dunn-Oliver Acadome on Thursday, making history in the process. 

The Bulldogs have qualified for the sub-regional round 11 times since the format was adopted in 1994, but only twice have they made it to the regional round. In 2020, Marbury lost to LeFlore in the regional semifinals. On Thursday, the Bulldogs made it to the regional finals for the first time in school history.

“This is the second time in school history making it to the Sweet Sixteen,” noted junior team captain Jamar Brown. “Putting it in the history books.”

Marbury (22-10) will play Sylacauga on Wednesday at 10:45 a.m. Central-Clay County ends the season at 13-14.

To understand Marbury’s remarkable journey, you have to travel back in time when the northern Autauga County school was playing in Class 1A and never reached the finals of their area tournament. It was 2008 when the Bulldogs won their first area tournament, beating Central-Hayneville to win Class 3A Area 4. A few days later, the Bulldogs lost their first-ever sub regional game to Greensboro.

When Turner arrived in 2023-24, he was greeted with a program that had reached the finals of the area tournament just eight times under the current format adopted 30 years prior and were 1-7 in sub regional games.

As he entered this season, Turner confided that his team, though youthful, would be good. Through the first half of the season, a 7-8 record seemed to indicate he was wrong.

“Our chemistry became better,” Brown said. “Some of our injured players came back and we were working as a team.”

Adding Noah Trotter, a transfer from Prattville, last year helped the roster, but the Bulldogs are a very inexperienced squad that includes six sophomores and five juniors.

“I think my patience has gotten unbelievable this year because I’m having to deal with kids that are so much younger than I’m used to starting in a varsity program,” Turner said. “At that age, it’s more of a focus. They get distracted very easy. But over the last two or three days, I have not had to say anything to these cats.”

They opened the season with a 46-44 win over Stanhope Elmore on Nov. 13, a significant win in the eyes of Trotter.

“The first game, we played Stanhope and beat them,” Trotter said. “I knew we were going to be good after we beat them.”

For Turner, it was a win over Catholic, the only game the Knights have lost since losing at Park Crossing on Jan. 3.

“It was at their place, the atmosphere is hostile because it’s ‘Senior Night,’” Turner recalled. “Plus, the distance from the back wall to the goal is more significant than any other place we’ve played all year. It gets you ready for this type of competition.

“We’ve only lost two games in 2026. We’ve won 14 out of 16 games in 2026 and that’s really when it clicked on.“

Turner’s team has grown up right before his eyes, fighting off a Central rally on Thursday late in the third quarter when Trotter nailed a pair of 3-pointers to put his team back in a comfortable double-digit lead.

“Toward the end of the third quarter, we started playing a little lazy,” said Trotter, who had 19 points and two assists. “We picked it back up and picked up the ‘W.’”

Turner considered spending a timeout to make sure his team was focused, but didn’t need to.  

“It seems like before I even need to get a timeout … it immediately goes back up to 14 because someone hits a very timely 3-point basket,” he said.

His best post player, Jalen Hall, had 27 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and three blocked shots, while team captain Brown had five points, 10 rebounds and four assists. There was a time when Turner might have thought his youthful team was a year away from contending for a trip to the state tournament.  

“I don’t feel that way any more,” he said. “It’s almost like (Nick) Saban in his second year (at Alabama in 2008) when he wasn’t expecting to have an opportunity. That’s exactly how I feel, like I’m falling into this thing right now. I’ve been given an opportunity and we’re going to grab it.”

For a program with very little postseason experience, it’s almost come full circle for Turner, whose first postseason loss as the Bulldogs’ head coach was a sub-regional defeat to Sylacauga in 2024. Two years later, Marbury will play the Aggies on Tuesday in the regional championship game.

“We’ve been getting after it at practice every day, working hard,” Brown said. “It doesn’t matter who we play next, we’re just going to work and get another 32 minutes.”

After guiding the Buldogs to their first-ever regional championship game, Turner admits it might be a little different when he drives by the Piggly Wiggly this weekend.   

“I think I might get a few waves,” he said. “Maybe a few more people wishing me well.”

Sylacauga 62, Elmore County 37

The Aggies (28-2) scored the first eight points of the game including a couple of 3-pointers and never looked back on the way to an easy win over Elmore County in Thursday’s boys Class 5A, Central Regional semifinal at Alabama State.

Sylacauga hit 10 shots behind the arc in the game including four from Corbyn Patterson and three from Erik O’Neal.

Asher Justice led the Panthers (7-20) with 17 points.

Elmore County was making its first appearance in the regional since 1991.