Loudon takes early exit with loss to Scott County

Scott County had Loudon’s number Friday. The two teams met in the AA-District 4 tournament at Loudon High School but there was no advantage for the Redskins being on their home court. The Highlanders took control early and dominated throughout, cruising to a 52-44 victory. It could have been either team's victory to claim as the two teams had split home wins in their regular season contests. 

At the first quarter horn the score was a respectable 11-7 in favor of the visitors, but Scott County turned up the heat in the second. At the break the margin had jumped to 10, with the lights on the scoreboard reading 24-14, Highlanders. The Redskins narrowed the gap back to seven after three, but never could get close enough to mount a serious charge. 

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Andrew Hendrix drives around a Scott County defender.

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Jake Blankenship goes up with a shot.

Jaden Bailey and Jordan Belvin matched one another as leaders on the score sheet with an even dozen. Andrew Hendrix dropped in eight points and the trio of Bryston Hardy, Ty Hairston and Jake Blankenship each scored four. With the loss, Loudon is out of the tournament.

West HS continues domination of Panthers

Lenoir City will face Farragut in tournament consolation game

The third meeting of Lenoir City and West High had the same result as the first two, even though the most recent contest was a 66-65 barn-burner on Jan. 24. Friday night wasn’t nearly as close in the AAA-District 4 tournament at Bearden HS, with West finishing on top 71-49.

The Rebels jumped out to an early 23-16 first quarter lead and increased the margin to 15 at the break, going up 40-25. After three in the books, the Panthers had drifted even farther behind at 59-37, and West cruised down the stretch for the easy win. 

Photo by Bryan Lynn © 2012 

Terrance Hall drives around a West 
defender in the Panthers game Friday.

Photo by Bryan Lynn © 2012 

Lucas Hamilton goes up to block the shot of West's top scorer Carson Brooks.

The Panthers struggled on offense. Only Terrance Hall cracked into double digits on the score sheet with 11. Four players, including Nathan Lester, Camion Patrick, Jordan Hall and Bill Ault, matched one another with seven points. Lucas Hamilton banged in six from the paint, while Tyler Jones dropped three in from the free-throw line. Micah McCrary was good from the line with one. Lester, Patrick and Jordan Hall each found the net with one basket from beyond the arc.

The Panthers play Farragut on Tuesday in the district tournament consolation game at Bearden High School. They are scheduled to tipoff at 6 p.m.  Lenoir City has defeated the Admirals in both of their prior meetings this season.

Panthers knock Catholic out, advance to face West in district tournament

Lenoir City traveled to Bearden High School Wednesday for the AAA District-4 contest against Knoxville Catholic and knocked the Irish out with a 50-41 win.

The Panthers jumped out to a good lead at the start. After one period the score was 15-7. Camion Patrick set the tone with his first basket, a 3-point shot while Lucas Hamilton banged in a pair of field goals. Nathan Lester added a pair of long-range aerials in the second quarter. At the break, the score was 24-13 with Lenoir City in command, or so it seemed. Catholic had other ideas, making half-time adjustments that sparked a 17-point third quarter rally. At the start of the final frame, the Panthers were still up, but only by one at 31-30.

Down the stretch, the Panthers made their own adjustments, with determination to not bow out early. Jordan Hall and Terrance Hall each ripped the net from long-range. Alex Hatfield was a perfect three-for –three from the foul line and banged in a couple of field goals from the paint to keep the Irish at bay in the end. 

Photo by Bryan Lynn © 2012 

Lenoir City's Alex Hatfield works for position to put up a shot

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Photo by Bryan Lynn © 2012 

Camion Patrick goes up for a layup in the Panthers' game against Catholic.

All total, eight Panthers inked the score sheet, with Jordan Hall earning top honors at 10. Hamilton tallied nine, with Hatfield hitting for seven points, all in the fourth quarter. Lester and Tyler Jones each scored six, while Terrance Hall and Patrick had five each.

Lenoir City will play West High School on Friday at 7:30 p.m. All district tournament games are at Bearden High School in Knoxville.

Loudon loves a sweet pair of wins over Wildcats

Monday closed out Loudon's regular season at home with Sweetwater proving to be a good tune-up heading into the start of district tournament week at Loudon. The Lady Redskins downed the Lady Wildcats 67-50 and the boys pounded the Wildcats 60-43.

The girls contest allowed Coach Bryant Collins to clear his bench, with 10 of the Lady Redskins inking the score sheet before the night was over. Senior post player Chelsey Moore shared the top scoring total at 19 with Sweetwater’s Raven Jefford. Loudon’s Zoe Grimes added 11, followed by Jara Gasper with nine and Savannah Berry hitting eight. Freshman Aspen Jordan was good with five points, while Julie Waddell and Bre Snow each dropped four through the hoop. Jodi Dailey drained a long-range bucket for three. Bekah Campbell and Haylee Henry each scored early field goals for two points apiece. Joining Dailey with baskets from beyond the arc were Berry with one and Moore with two.

Loudon started slow and allowed the Lady Wildcats an early lead. After one period, the visitors were up 13-12. The Lady Redskins turned up the intensity on defense in the second period, holding Sweetwater to only three points. They also dialed up more offense to the tune of five players scoring a combined 13 to jump on top 25-16 at the half. 

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Savannah Berry takes it to the hoop through a pair of Lady Wildcats.

By the time the third quarter clock wound down, the Lady Redskins’ Moore and Grimes were wound up, each hitting three field goals in the 19-point period for a 44-28 thrashing. Loudon gave no quarter down the stretch. In the fourth, 23 points by seven different Lady Redskins put the game out of reach, even though Jefford hit three 3-point baskets in a valiant 22 point comeback bid by Sweetwater.

A marked difference in free throw shooting could have spelled doom for Loudon had the score been closer. The Lady Redskins only hit seven-of-16 for 43.7 percent from the charity stripe. Sweetwater connected on 15-of-21 for 71.4 percent of their foul shots.

The Lady Redskins won the regular season title and earned a bye in the District 4-AA tournament at Loudon this week. They will hit the hardwood Saturday at 7 p.m. against the winner of Thursday’s CAK/Kingston game. The district championship is scheduled for Feb. 21 at 6 p.m.

Coming off a thrilling come-from-behind double overtime win over cross-county rival Lenoir City last week, the Redskins continued both their comeback and winning ways at the expense of Sweetwater.

Sweetwater started strong, going up 14-6 on their hosts in the first period. The second quarter saw a complete reversal as Loudon scored 19 to the Wildcats eight for a 25-22 Redskin advantage. Loudon’s defense got even stingier in the third. The Redskins held the visitors to only five, while thrilling the home crowd with 3-point shots by Jordan Belvin (two) and Andrew Hendrix (one), to ink 19 more points in the period. The 44-27 score at the third quarter buzzer had the fans roaring their approval. Both teams put 16 through the hoop in the fourth, keeping the final score margin right where Loudon wanted it with a 17-point advantage.

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Andrew Hendrix puts up a shot in Loudon's 60-43 win over Sweetwater.

Hendrix led the Redskins with 15 points, while Ty Hairston was close behind at 13. Belvin and Jaden Bailey each ripped the net for nine. Jon Dorsett was good with six and Jake Blankenship banged in four. Clay Jenkins and Justin Shell each added a pair on fourth quarter field goals. Bailey hit a long-range basket in addition to Belvin and Hendrix’s third quarter heroics from outside.

The Redskins play Scott County Friday at 8 p.m. in district tournament play at Loudon High School.

Loudon loses two battles but Lady Redskins win the war. Take 4-AA District crown.

Tuesday night Loudon traveled to Alcoa for a pair of District 4-AA battles. The Lady Redskins came up just short, falling 49-45 to the Lady Tornadoes, but their 8-2 district record was still enough to earn the 2012 regular season crown.

The boys’ game was not as close with a 20-point margin at the end. Alcoa, 9-1 in district play, prevailed 64-44 over the visitors and won the district over 8-2 Christian Academy of Knoxville. 

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Jara Gasper drives around an Alcoa defender.

  

Photo by Sammie Dunlap © 2012.
Jordan Belvin works for position, driving the lane. 
Belvin scored 12 points for the Redskins.

The Lady Redskins were slow out of the gate with only four first period points to Alcoa’s 17. Loudon’s game-high point leader Jara Gasper did not score until the second quarter.  At the break the margin was 27-15. Half-time adjustments benefited the Lady Redskins as they doubled the Lady Tornadoes production, posting 18 to Alcoa’s nine third period points. The nearly even fourth quarter, with Alcoa up 13-12 for the period, carried them through for the victory.

Foul shots proved to be a pivotal difference as Loudon hit the higher percentage, dropping eight-of-10. Unfortunately for the Lady Redskins, Alcoa made eight more trips to the charity stripe, hitting 13-of-18. During the fourth quarter alone, the Lady Tornadoes stepped to the line 11 times as Loudon tried to flip fouls into added possessions. The strategy worked, as Loudon hit all six of their fourth quarter foul shots but it was too little, too late. The early game deficit was too large a mountain to climb.

Gasper netted 20, including one basket from long-range, and a perfect three-for-three at the foul line. Jodi Dailey dropped in eight, also hitting one from beyond the arc. Bre Snow scored six, hitting two field goals and both of her free throw attempts. Savannah Berry put five points on the score sheet, including one 3-point basket. Chelsey Moore hit four from the paint and Zoe Grimes was good on two free throws.  

The Alcoa boys showed why they took the district, overpowering the Redskins from the starting whistle. After one it was 13-8, which seemed respectable at the time. They unleashed the real Tornadoes in the second quarter, dropping in 22 points to the Redskins 14 for a half-time score of 35-22. The third quarter was more of the same, with a flurry of threes pushing the margin to 56-33. The fourth quarter was academic as Alcoa coasted to victory.

Andrew Hendrix netted 13 for the Redskins, while Jordan Belvin dropped in four 3-pointers for 12. Of Hendrix’s points, three baskets were long-range, for a combined seven 3-pointers for Loudon. Jaden Bailey scored seven while Jake Blankenship banged in six points from inside the paint. The trio of Ty Hairston, Jon Dorsett and Justin Shell each found the cylinder for two points.

Loudon will close their regular season at home against cross-county rival Lenoir City on Friday. The girls tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the boys will start at 7:30 p.m.

Senior night festivities are planned to recognize Savannah Berry, Jodi Dailey, Jara Gasper, Chesley Moore and Julie Waddell for the Lady Redskins. Jake Blankenship and Justin Shell are Redskin seniors who will be honored for their contributions on the hardwood.

Caught between Rockwood and a hard place, Greenback falls hard

The Lady Cherokees started out strong Tuesday night, but lost their rhythm in the third period, while Rockwood adjusted and took over the game down the stretch, winning at home 53-47.  It was a physical game throughout. Greenback girls head coach Ed McCollum finally had enough and spoke his mind to the officials, resulting in a double technical foul call and was forced to leave the gym. 

The boys contest seemed to be called more evenly, in spite of the winning play being a foul called against the Cherokees. It was a good call, resulting in a 53-52 victory for the Tigers. 

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012 
 Kassidi Knight drives the baseline.

The Lady ‘Kees jumped out front 15-13 in the first quarter and put up even better numbers in the second, going to intermission leading 33-24. Halftime adjustments by Rockwood were effective as Greenback only scored four points after the break. Rockwood tied the game 37-37 at 1:15 on the third quarter clock, took the lead on foul shots, and ended the quarter with a 39-37 advantage. The final period was close with Greenback scoring 10 against Rockwood’s nine, but the damage had been done.

The Lady Cherokees did not go quietly. With 3:15 to go and Rockwood up 46-45, Kassidi Knight dropped in two free throws to reclaim the lead. A turnover by the Lady Tigers put the ball back in Greenback’s hands. Close coverage by the Rockwood defense put the ball back in the Lady Tigers hands. The wheels came off as a combination of Mallory Winters’ fourth foul was called away from the shooter and contact by Rockwood with no fouls called sent coach McCollum into orbit and the official ‘teed him up’. Focus was lost and Rockwood took advantage down the stretch.

Knight was team high scorer for the Lady Cherokees with 15. Winters also hit in double figures with 10. Katelyn Sparks dropped in eight, while Courtneay Sheedy netted six. Bailey Sellers and Autumn Tipton each scored four. Winters and Sheedy found the net from outside with a pair of 3-pointers each.

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
Mallory Winters, No. 23, was called for her fourth foul on this play.

The Lady Cherokees hit seven-of-12 from the free-throw line, for 58.3 percent. Rockwood went to the line 25 times and netted 17 for 68 percent.

The boys’ game was close at first, with an 18-17 home team advantage after one. Greenback worked their magic in the second and jumped in front 34-26. It was the only quarter that five Cherokees inked the score sheet.

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Kassidi Knight tries to put up a shot. No foul was called on the play.

Like the girls contest, Rockwood adjustments during the break had an impact down the stretch. Greenback’s offensive production dropped dramatically in the second half while the Tigers stayed close. After three, Greenback was still up 44-38. With 2:35 to go, the Tigers had shaved the margin to 49-48.

 After an exchange of field goals, and a trio of foul shots by both squads, three additional points were added to the score for each team. With 1.8 seconds on the clock and Greenback up 52-51, Rockwood received a gift in the form of an over the back foul after a missed Greenback free throw. The Tigers’ Cleveland Davidson made both shots to give the home team their second victory of the night.

Josh Pace led the Cherokees with 15 points and Tyler Bryant dropped in 14. Trevor Franklin was also in double figures with 10. Austin Bryant netted six and Eric Anderson nailed a 3-pointer. Hogan Goodson and Landon Disney each connected with a field goal. Success from the free-throw line was missing as the Cherokees hit a paltry three-of-nine for 33.3 percent. Rockwood hit eight-of-11 for 72.7 percent.

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Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Josh Pace drives in for a layup. Pace led the Cherokees with 15 points.

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Trevor Franklin drives in for a shot. He made no trips to the foul line during the game.

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Trevor Franklin hit the floor after this play.

Panthers win. Lady Panthers fall in loss to William Blount

Lenoir City’s Panthers traveled to William Blount Friday night and defeated former Panthers coach Kevin Windle’s Governors on their home court 74-66. The game was much closer than their first meeting. The Panthers won at home 68-45 on Jan. 6. 

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Haley Morris drives into the lane to put up a shot in the Lady Panthers game at Wm. Blount. Friday.

                                                                                                                                       

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Cailin Hurley clears out from the baseline after snagging a rebound.

Photo by Ambler Brown © 2012
 Camion Patrick goes in for a layup in the Panthers 74-66 win at Wm. Blount Friday.

Click to view and purchase these and other photographs from the game. 

The Lady Panthers, 10-14 (5-9), were in it for a while, but dropped their game 51-34. The score after the first period was a respectable 17-14 but the Lady Govs defense stiffened, holding Lenoir City to single digit quarters the rest of the night. At the break the home team’s advantage had grown to 31-13.

The score sheet looked more like a recent economic indicator with scores dropping more each period. The Lady Govs doubled Lenoir City’s 7-point third period offense and cut it to only three points in the fourth.

Tyler Powers scored 10 to lead the Lady Panthers. Katie Smartt hit for eight. Chassady Gray and Kara Steil each dropped five through the hoop, while the trio of Kelsey Marriott, Lindsey Jones and Ally Latham each scored two. Long-range baskets were made by Gray and Smartt, with one each and Powers netted two. The Lady Panthers hit eight of 14 from the charity stripe for 57 percent.

“This did not help us in the district standings,” Lady Panthers coach Kelly Herron said about the loss. “I did not want to be a seventh seed in the tournament.”

The Panthers were hot out of the gate with 21-first quarter points to 13 for the Govs. The gap closed tighter in the second period with a 44-32 half-time score. Both defenses tightened in the second half, as Lenoir City only put 15 points in during both final periods.

With a couple of threes and made free throws, William Blount rallied to within one for a 59-58 score at 5:15 to go in the game but the Panthers kept finding a way to pull away down the stretch. Terrance Hall was six-for-six from the charity stripe for the Panthers, all in the fourth period. Collectively Lenoir City hit 78.3 percent from the free-throw line.

Three Panthers scored in double figures, led by Tyler Jones with 14. Jordan Hall netted 13 and Alex Hatfield dropped in 12. Terrance Hall and Camion Patrick each found the nylon for eight points and Lucas Hamilton ripped it with seven. Bill Ault scored five, Nathan Lester four and Steven Halcomb dropped in three, for a total of nine players inking the score sheet. Jordan Hall and Tyler Jones each hit a pair from beyond the arc.

Lenoir City 14-10 (8-6) plays Kingston Monday for their final home game of the season. It will be senior night for the Panthers and Lady Panthers as players from both teams will receive special recognition for their efforts on the hardwood.

Lady Panthers making their final appearance are Kristi Brackett, Abbie Cheatham, Chassady Gray, Kelsey Marriott, Tyler Powers, Dawn Radford, Taylor Robinson and team manager Kayla Honore.  Panthers seniors are Bill Ault, Alex Hatfield, Tyler Jones and Nathan Lester.

Lenoir City will travel to Loudon Friday for a 6 p.m. tipoff. The District 4-AAA tournament will take place Feb. 15-22 at Bearden High School in Knoxville.