Andrews – With a 37-point victory over Hiwassee Dam, the Andrews boys varsity basketball team is in the win column.
The Wildcats (1-2) hosted the Eagles (1-2) for their first meeting of the season between in-county teams on Nov. 26. Andrews got the ball rolling and didn’t slow down.
The game started fast with points from Andrews to get the first quarter going. The Wildcats opened with a 24-point first quarter and only allowed the Eagles to score eight. The Eagles called a timeout after the Cats went on an 8-1 run to open the game. They called their second timeout as the Cats built a 22-4 first-quarter lead.
In the second quarter, Andrews’ tough physical style of play was on full display. Gabe Clark drained a three-point shot to give the Cats their first 20-point lead of the game, and they kept putting up points to build a 31-point lead at halftime.
Coming out of halftime, the Eagles settled down and scored 14 points in the third quarter, only allowing the Cats to score nine. The Eagles were scoring, but still struggling with the Cats’ tough defense.
In the fourth quarter, the Cats continued scoring with 19 points. The Wildcats also got another 30-point lead late in the game, as their tough defense created chances that they capitalized on the other side of the court.
To end the game, Andrews junior Myca Mustin drained a three-pointer for his first varsity basket in his debut season.
Fans were loud in the packed stands throughout the entire game. Loud cheers from each side of the gym echoed as their team scored.
The Wildcats spread the ball around well, and everyone got on the score sheet. They were led by Keegan Ellis, who had 18 points, two assists and six steals.
Ty Clark had 17 points, five rebounds and two assists. Ty Clark was 6/7 from the field, 2/3 on three-pointers and went 3/4 from the free-throw line. Gabe Clark was the third Wildcat in double-digit points with 11, adding six rebounds and two assists.
Jimmy Kelley led the Eagles with nine points and five assists. Jonah Dockery added eight points and five rebounds.
The Wildcats were dominant in the paint, as they made 20 buckets in the paint compared to the Eagles’ eight. They were also 27-8 scoring off of turnovers.
After the game, Wildcats head coach Matt Maennle said, “We played well. We played hard. We got some talented ball players, and we’re trying to play a little more free, and I’m trying to relax a little bit more as a coach so they’re not uptight. Some of them are really gifted, and all of them play hard.
“Our effort was tremendous. We’ve been working on our defense … we gave up lots of transition and a lot of offensive rebounds [against Smoky Mountain], and I felt like we improved in less than a week, so that was the big takeaway from tonight.”
Heading to Franklin
The Wildcats closed out their week Saturday night on the road against Franklin, falling to the Panthers 85-33.
Franklin (2-0) took an early lead and didn’t look back. The Panthers put up 23 points in the first quarter and only allowed the Wildcats to score eight.
Andrews began to score more in the second quarter with 15 points, but Franklin extended its lead by 32 points in the second quarter. Franklin led 55-23 at halftime.
Coming out of the half, Franklin continued to grow the lead, scoring 18 points in the third quarter and 12 more in the fourth. The Wildcats were only able to put together 12 points in the second half en route to their 85-35 loss.
Ty Clark led the Cats with a double-double on 14 points and 11 rebounds. Ellis had eight points and four rebounds. The Cats went 2/2 from the free-throw line thanks to Ellis and Ty Clark making one each.
Up next
In their next game, the Wildcats will host Summit Charter (0-3) today at 7:30 p.m. They play host to Nantahala (3-1) at 7 p.m. Monday.
At 7:30 p.m. Friday, the Eagles will host Summit Charter for their homecoming game. At 7:30 p.m. Monday, they will host Hayesville, then at 8 p.m.
On Friday, Dec. 13, the Eagles will play their first conference game of the season when they head to Highlands (2-2).