SHELBYVILLE, TN – The Shelbyville Central Golden Eagles suffered their first loss of the season against the visiting Summit Spartans, 60-58, in a battle of early-season unbeatens. 

Summit’s Marty Phillips led all scorers with 18 points – his exact season average coming in – and his teammate, Joel Coverston, was just as instrumental, finishing with 17 points of his own. Keenan West was the other Spartan to finish in double-figures with 10 points, and Jackson Puri chipped in with nine points. 

For the Golden Eagles, Tae’Shawn Shelton and Malek Johnson were the only scorers in double-figures with 15 points and 12 points, respectively. 13 of Shelton’s 15 points came in the second half after he was tagged with two quick fouls in the first quarter while Johnson connected on four three-pointers. Jordan Taylor, another key starter who finished with eight points, was hit with two quick fouls within the first 60 seconds, keeping him from playing 15 of the 16 first-half minutes.

Shelbyville Central held a one-point lead with a little over three minutes left in the final frame, and against the Summit zone, Golden Eagles’ Head Coach Shane Young decided to pull the ball out and run the clock. The Spartans stayed patient until the clock ticked under two minutes to go, forcing a rushed mid-range jumper from the hosts leading to a fastbreak opportunity. Summit capitalized with Phillips finding Coverston for the layup plus the foul. He was able to complete the three-point play, and Shelbyville was never able to re-take the lead. 

The first half was fast-paced and frenetic with Summit taking a 20-15 lead after the opening period. The Spartans extended their lead to 38-28 going into the halftime locker room, ending the second quarter on a 9-0 run. 

With the Golden Eagles’ starters coming out for the second half, the hosts came out of the locker room with a renewed intensity on both ends, quickly cutting the Spartans lead to a single possession. Shelton scored 11 of his team’s first 13 points in the third quarter as part of their furious rally, but Summit showed poise to enter the final frame with a 52-49 lead. 

Shelbyville would eventually take the lead about halfway through the fourth quarter before trying to sit on the ball and run clock which quickly backfired. A late three from Taylor cut a four-point Spartans lead to one with just 0.8 seconds left to go, and after Phillips split a pair of free throws, the clock ran out on the Golden Eagles. 

Summit improves to 6-0 on the season.

Shelbyville suffers their first defeat on the year, falling to 4-1 with their next game scheduled for Tuesday night at Tullahoma.