St. Tammany News

Salmen won its 13th consecutive game and finished 10-0 in District 9-4A after defeating East Jefferson, 64-55, at home Friday night.

Salmen goes into the postseason with a 28-3 mark.

Salmen's R.J. Scott drives into an East Jefferson defender during the first half of Friday night's game held at Salmen. The Spartans won the game to finish with an undefeated district record. (Staff Photo by Chris Kinkaid)

"Every game's big, but the more you win, the bigger they get," Salmen coach Jay Carlin said. "You tell the kids, 'you have to play well against good teams.' This team is a good basketball team."

East Jefferson (20-12) finished runner-up in district play at 7-3.

Things did not start well for the Spartans as they struggled with their shooting throughout the first quarter, but the momentum started to swing Salmen's way late in the opening period. With East Jefferson leading, 16-7, the Warriors were called for an offensive foul. On the ensuing possession, Jared Harrison, who tallied 12 points, hit a leaner from just inside the free-throw line to cut the margin to 16-9 after the first.

That began a 30-5 run when Salmen took over.

In the second quarter, the Spartans used a full-court press on defense and went down low to Isiah Tate on offense. The teams exchanged buckets to start the period, then Kyle Burkett, who had eight points, made consecutive layups to make it 18-15.

Salmen tied the game when Tate split free throws after he rebounded a miss and Harrison hit a pair from the line. The Warriors went back in front as Dorian Bush, who scored 17 points, hit one from the charity stripe.

The Spartans then fed Tate, and he got the next four points to give his team a 22-19 lead.

Tate said he was taking what the defense gave him. He added that being guarded by bigger players does not bother him.

"We tried to win inside. If I needed help, kick it out to my teammates. We've got a lot of people on our team that we are confident we can knock down shots," Tate said. "I work against taller and bigger people every day in practice. I just try to do whatever I have to do to help my team win."

Tate's play opened up the outside for Salmen as R.J. Scott, who tallied a game-high 20 points, hit a three. He finished with six treys.

East Jefferson tried to stay in the game as Bush got a basket, but Scott hit another trey and, with 2:20 left in the half, the Spartans led 28-21 and took a 30-21 cushion into the locker room.

The halftime break didn't cool off the Spartans as Scott came out and drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Burkett grabbed a Salmen miss and put the shot back, and Harrison drove baseline for a bucket. The Spartans turned a nine-point, first-quarter deficit into a 37-21 advantage with 6:12 left in the third quarter.

After Bush hit a pair from the line, Scott dialed long distance once again. The Warriors scored to make it 40-25, but a Tate jumper and layup made the score 44-25 with 2:13 left in the third.

Salmen's biggest lead in the game was 48-25, but East Jeff was able to make an 8-0 run to end the third period and trailed 48-33.

The Warriors did what they could but got no closer than nine points. Darian Riley led East Jefferson with 19 points.

During the game, former Salmen players who competed under Carlin were in attendance.

They were introduced at halftime and had a celebration in the cafeteria after the contest.

One of the more notable players from Salmen is current Chicago Bulls guard Chris Duhon. He said Carlin helped him both on-and-off the court.

"It's real special to have the opportunity to see guys that you played with and guys that you watched. I can speak for everybody. He helped us in all our lives. He's always been a great coach. Hopefully, he can win a state championship," Duhon said.