Sports Writer

As it turns out, Elba didn’t miss Monroe Williams that much at all.

Williams, who forms a powerful combination with fellow Tiger forward Tim Ware, was injured in a shooting incident last week and probably won’t be available again until the postseason. But Ware proved he was more than up to the challenge Friday night against Goshen as he almost singlehandedly helped lead Elba to a tough 60-48 win over the Eagles.

Ware fought off every defense Goshen head coach Major Lane could throw at him, finishing with 25 points on the night and doing it from everywhere on the court. He shot three-pointers and battled in the paint, scoring point after point. He also went 6/7 from the free throw line.

The game was another classic battle between two of Alabama’s top 3A basketball programs as Elba came in ranked No.5, while the Eagles were No.6, but much like Elba’s win over Goshen at home, almost two weeks ago, it was the Tigers free throw shooting that helped them pull away in the fourth quarter.

With the Eagles up 40-38, Kendaris Pelton was called for an intentional foul on Elba’s Wayne Reed and with only a 3-point basket by Ware being the exception, Goshen would send the Tigers to the charity stripe six of Elba’s next seven possessions. While Elba was shooting 10-of-12 those six times at the line, the Eagles could muster only four points, those four coming on two Jamar Tucker layups.

Tucker finished with 15 points, but was held in check for most of the night by Ware and the Elba defense, which also was able to stop Pelton, a normally consistent shooter. The freshman finished with just two points.

One Eagles player that the Tigers couldn’t shut down was Averick Rogers, who led Goshen with 21 points, all from behind the three-point arc.

Elba improves to 21-4 on the season, while Goshen drops to 15-5. Next up for the Eagles is the last game of the regular season against the 1998 3A state champs, the Trinity Wildcats.