Demopolis opened the game strong and quickly faded en route to a 59-49 loss to Sunshine Thursday night, finishing off the team’s senior night festivities.

Demopolis charged out to an early 8-0 lead. However, the Tigers quickly watched that advantage evaporate as Sunshine mounted a run of its own to knot the game at 10 with only seconds remaining on the first quarter clock.

In the waning moments of the game’s opening period, Jonathan Marshall drained a three-pointer, beating the buzzer and giving Demopolis the 13-10 lead.

That marked the last time DHS led in the game. The visiting Tigers mounted a 13-2 second quarter to take a 23-15 lead into halftime and scarcely looked back.

“They played like a basketball team,” Sunshine head coach Walter Jones said of his squad. “I’m not singling anybody out. It was a team effort.”

Sunshine’s scoring effort was anchored by the hot shooting of its backcourt. Woodrikus Carlisle poured in six treys, finishing the night with a game high 26 points. Conversely, John May stroked four shots from beyond the arc, ending his game with 14.

The win figures to hand Sunshine some measure of momentum heading into its area tournament. However, Jones emphasized that the key to the team’s postseason success lies in something more intangible.

“It’s just that they’ve got to believe in themselves,” Jones said of his team.

For Demopolis, the loss comes in the midst of a stretch in which the team has nine games in 13 days. After the game, head coach Jesse Bell downplayed the effects of fatigue on the team’s performance.

“We didn’t share the basketball and didn’t play any defense,” Bell said before turning his attention to his team’s shooting woes. “We missed too many layups.”

Jeremy Wallace headed up the DHS scoring with 21 points. Anthony Hardy added 13.

Demopolis travels to John Essex Saturday night before wrapping up its regular season Monday at Pickens County.