By ANTHONY STEVENS
for the Daily Telegraph

BRISTOL, Va. — John Battle flexed some Clinch Mountain District muscle and the Trojans rolled to a 59-23 win over Hurley Friday in a boys consolation game of the Alpha Natural Resources Basketball Classic at Virginia High School’s Bearcat Den.
“There’s no need for me to lie, we’re just not playing,” said Hurley coach Mark Cooper. “We just don’t have any ball sense right now. If we don’t get it together we’ll be like this the rest of the season.
“To be as athletic as we are, we just have to step up and play some ball. I don’t know if it’s my coaching or their playing, we’re just not representing Hurley the right way.”
It was cold outside and so was the Rebels shooting inside. Hurley made only 7-of-43 shots they attempted, for a frigid 16 percent. Wesley Peck dropped in 10 points to lead Hurley. Tyler Stacy added six points and Nick Gibson five points.
“We’re just not aggressive taking the ball to the hole,” Cooper said. “We’re just not an outside shooting team, we just don’t shoot the ball well from the perimeter. When you put those two together, you’re going to have quarters where you struggle to score.”
John Battle held a 12-5 lead after the first eight minutes. The opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run and that was the ballgame. Greg Stacy hit a 15-foot jumper with 2:25 to play in the first half for the Rebels only points of the quarter. The Trojans led 27-7 at halftime.
“We played some defense,” John Battle coach Tim Shoals said. “We hadn’t done that the last couple of games. We got back on the defensive end and I was proud of our effort.”
Matthew McMurray posted a double-double for John Battle (5-4) with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Dylan Garrett and Alex Posey scored 12 points each.
Hurley (2-4) still has some rebuilding to do after being a Black Diamond District power and state contender the last few years.
“It’s a lot different,” commented Cooper. “It has been fun the last two or three years. I knew we would be a little down but I felt like we would be playing better than we are right now. But the kids are playing hard and they try.”
Hurley will play another consolation contest in the Classic at 12 noon today.

At The Bearcat Den
HURLEY (2-4)
Peck 3 2-2 10, Gibson 1 2-2 5, Jones 0 0-0 0, Hibbitts 0 0-0 0, Estep 0 0-0 0, B. Stacy 0 0-0 0, Oliver 0 0-0 0, Charles 0 0-0 0, T. Stacy 2 0-0 6, Deel 0 0-0 0, G. Stacy 1 0-0 2. Totals 7 4-4 23.
JOHN BATTLE (5-4)
Blaylock 2 2-2 6, Posey 4 4-4 12, Tipton 0 0-0 0, Patel 0 0-0 0, Mills 2 0-0 4, Luchini 4 0-0 8, Bowman 2 2-4 6, Garrett 5 0-0 12, McMurray 5 0-2 10, Clark 0 1-2 1. Totals 24 9-14 59.
Hurley.............5 2 8 8 — 23
John Battle...12 15 13 19 — 59
3-point goals – Hurley 5 (Peck 2, Gibson 1, T. Stacy 2), John Battle 2 (Garrett 2). Total fouls – Hurley 12, John Battle 6. Fouled out - none. Technicals – none.