Malone splits pair

The Malone Tigers split a pair of games in Summer League action Tuesday night in Marianna.

Malone first fell to Port St. Joe 59-46, before rebounding to take a 56-47 win over county rival Cottondale in the Tigers’ second game.

The Tigers led Port St. Joe early by as many as nine points, and were up by three at halftime.

However, the Sharks stormed back in the second half with hot shooting from the perimeter to seize control of the game.

“I thought we out-played (Port St. Joe) in the first half,” Malone coach Steven Welch said. “In the second half, they definitely out-played us.

“They shot it better. They hit several 3-pointers in the second half. They’re one of these teams that plays when they want to. When they want to and decide to turn it on, they’re pretty good. They’re one of the better teams around here.”

Against Cottondale, both the Tigers and Hornets got off to slow starts, with the game tied at 23-23 at the half.

A hot streak by Malone in the second half gave the Tigers just enough cushion to pull out the victory.

“In the first half, we both stunk it up,” Welch said. “About halfway through the second half, we started making some shots and pulled away. It was ugly for a little while, but it got better.

“We came out of the gate kind of hot, leveled off, and then made some shots at the end to close it.”

The Tigers take on Marianna today at 5 p.m. and Graceville at 7 p.m. in Malone’s last day at Marianna Summer League.

Welch said he is satisfied with what his team has taken from the summer session.

“I think we’re getting better in some areas,” the coach said. “We’ve shown some improvement and that’s a good sign.  I’m pleased with them.

“They’re playing hard for the most part and the young kids are getting some experience that will benefit us later.”

In other action Tuesday night, Cottondale defeated Chipley 39-36, and Port St. Joe took a 60-45 victory over Chipley.