Retro uniforms net Eagles win

Josey went old school Saturday night at Glenn Hills. They wore the same golden and lime-green jerseys that had not been worn since the 1995 state finals against Westside.

We're not talking replica style, but the exact same uniforms.

"You wouldn't believe our equipment room," Josey coach Sam Lilly said. "We've got jerseys from 1975. Uniforms galore. "

The Eagles might want to keep them after a 45-39 comeback win. Josey found a form that looked more like its powerhouse squads of the past than an angst-ridden squad of the present.

The Eagles (13-7) had their shiny new gear stripped away from them with a slide that saw them lose six of their past nine games after a 9-1 start. They also lost the right to practice in their 1-year-old home, James Henry Roundtree Athletic Complex. They're back in the old gym.

"We had to take it all away and go back to Josey pride," Lilly said. "We had to go back to playing for the name on the jerseys."

There had been plenty of bickering.

Bickering in practice and on the bench.

Bickering on the court and bickering from passionate yet opinionated fans from the stands.

"We needed a change in our whole attitude," forward Marcus McDaniel said. "... Selfishness had killed us. We had to work all of that out."

A great defensive effort highlighted the victory, as Josey allowed the Spartans (4-11) only 12 points in the second half.

"One thing we'd always been able to do this year was play great defense," Lilly said. "Our problems had came on offense."

That discontent continued to mushroom in the early going. With 5:11 left in the first half, Josey had committed nine turnovers and found itself down nine points 18-9 to a Spartans team starting five sophomores.

Lilly called a timeout when he'd seen enough. His Eagles had only taken nine shots from the field to that point.

"I just said, 'Look at how we're playing guys,'" Lilly said. "It was the same thing we did losing to Westside."

Bench sparkplug Trumaine Jenkins triggered an Eagles run with six points, two steals and two assists in the second quarter, as everyone added their little niche.

"If I had a bottle of champagne, I'd be spraying it," Lilly said. "We finally played together and played with love."

Reach Jeff Sentell at (706) 823-3425 or jeff.sentell@augustachronicle.com.