Everyone came out to see this one.
Brett Wade (Knoxville Central) hit three late deep threes including the dagger that put Central up for good and helped the Bobcats escape with a 77-71 victory over Knoxville West.
Wade was sterling during crunch time hitting his shots but also getting a very timely steal and aggressive rebound to thwart any hope of a Rebel comeback.
Dre Mattheiu (Knoxville Central) was equally as impressive finishing with 22 markers, as did Wade, and making clutch buckets and passes to keep his squad within shooting distance throughout the game.
Zeke Holden (Knoxville Central) added 14 in the win.
JayJuan Mitchell (Knoxville West) and Phillip ‘Tookie" Stanford (Knoxville West) led the Rebels with 18 and 17 respectively.
Stanford was especially tough getting major buckets at crucial times and showing he is a force in the East Tennessee landscape.
Central will face the home team Bearden Bulldogs for the title tomorrow evening.
Bearden 61
Knoxville Webb 60
Jaeland Lawson (Bearden) came alive late with two clutch runners and a big steal and convert keeping the Bulldogs on the unbeaten path in this young season escaping with a 61-60 victory over a tough Spartan bunch.
Lawson led all scorers with 21, while Rico White (Bearden), finished with 12 including a big time three late in the Bulldog comeback. Ty Greene (Bearden) also finished with 12.
Donovan Whiteside (Knoxville Webb) was a man among boys for the Spartans finishing with 20 points and scoring off the dribble at will, using his superior strength to get to any place on the court he wished to go. At 6-3 he's one to keep an eye on for sure.
Dwight Tarwater (Knoxville Webb) added 16 points including two vicious two-handed slams before foul trouble limited his time in the final stanza.
David Wilhoite (Knoxville Webb) added 13 for the Spartans.
Fulton 78
Stone Memorial 73
Galen Campbell (Fulton) rocked the nets for 39 large and the Falcons overcame a big Stone lead to slip past the determined Crossville crew 78-73.
Jalen Steele (Fulton) added 22 in the hotly contested victory.
Dustin Melton (Stone Memorial) was a man on fire scorching the twine for 22 points and hitting several long, tough threes as the clock dwindled down. Brandon Cole (Stone Memorial) added 16 while Zach Sherrill (Stone Memorial) finished with 13 points and 18 rebounds.
Jefferson County 67
Grace Christian 62
Dusty Nickles (Jefferson County) wanted the people of Knoxville to stand up and take notice as the big junior dropped 23 markers and helped lead the Patriots to a tough 67-62 victory over a determined bunch of Rams from Grace Christian.
Nickles helped thwart a big time Grace comeback with timely buckets while senior guard Sam Hodge (Jefferson County), despite some medical attention added 18 to help the Patriot cause. Elliot Satterfield (Jefferson County) finished with 13 including two nice put back slams that ignited the crowd.
Freshman Adarius Wilson (Grace Christian), who is an identical match to former Anderson County guard Jordan Rorex, finished with 17 to lead the Rams. Daniel Byram (Grace Christian) added 12.
Tomorrow takes me to the Arby's Classic but I will have someone at the Super 16 to give me the lowdown on the outcome in the title game. Good luck to all.
