From a thrilling overtime win to scoring 100 points on Friday, the Wildcats had a big week with Smoky Mountain Conference wins.
The boys varsity team picked up two wins, while the girls team split their week.
Boys varsity
The Wildcats kicked off their week with a 78-72 overtime victory over Hayesville on Jan. 21.
It was a close game from the tipoff, as both teams started scoring from the beginning and Hayesville’s student section was loud. After hearing jeers, Gabe Clark of Andrews knocked down a 3-pointer to silence them for the moment.
Both teams battled in the first quarter, but Hayesville led 19-16 after the opening eight minutes.
In the second quarter, Keegan Ellis gave the Cats the lead back early, but in the second half of the second quarter, Hayesville went on a run to take a 34-28 lead. Ellis drained a 3-pointer to make it a three-point game, where it would stay at halftime.
Coming out of the half, it was still an all-out battle. In the final two minutes of the third quarter, there were multiple lead changes as both sides of the gym loudly cheered when their team would make a shot. Heading into the fourth quarter, Hayesville led 51-50.
The Yellow Jackets went on an eight-point run to start the fourth quarter. The Cats then fought back to make it a two-point game with 3:56 left.
Ty Clark tied it on a free throw. Hayesville regained the lead after the referee missed a call on a Jackets player accidentally kicking the ball, which led to them going down and scoring.
With 1:03 left, Braxton Rickett took to the air to drop a shot in over Hayesville’s defenders. With the game still tied and the clock ticking down, Ellis took a contested 3-pointer that swirled around the rim but didn’t fall, sending the game into overtime.
Andrews head coach Matt Maennle’s message to the team was, “I’m really confident in my kids. I watch them everyday put in work to make plays. I’m really confident in my guys, and I told them, ‘Just go make a play.’ …
“I just wanted them to know how much confidence I have in them going into overtime … I really wanted this win for our guys, our coaches wanted this win for our guys. It was a fun game and huge win on the road for our conference.”
The tension in the gym was as thick as Smoky Mountain fog as the teams headed into the four-minute overtime period.
Just over three minutes into overtime, Ellis was fouled and the Andrews side of the gym erupted in cheers. He made the layup he was fouled on, then converted the and-one to give the Cats a three-point lead. Hayesville went down and tied it on a 3, but that was the last time it would be even.
Ellis and Gabe Clark made shots to give the Cats a 71-67 lead, then Ty Clark converted free throws to extend their lead. Hayesville went to the free-throw line with 24.6 seconds left and converted two of three shots to make it a two-point game.
Andrews was fouled multiple more times as the Jackets tried to stop the clock, but the Cats converted their free throws to secure the win.
“Fought adversity. Made some big plays late and we were down by eight with about four minutes left, and they had kids make plays for them. We weren’t shocked by it because this is a good basketball program, but we just weren’t prepared for it,” Maennle said.
“We had to make some adjustments, and it’s the toughest place to play in the Smoky Mountain Conference. Our kids fought, had some adversity and it was an up-and-down game. We had some kids make some huge shots, some unselfish plays and assists late, especially in overtime. That’s what I want out of my kids, and they fought so hard.”
He added that this win was important for confidence and momentum heading into the reminder of the conference schedule.
On Friday, the Wildcats headed back to Maennle’s old stomping grounds, Swain County, where Andrews came away with a 100-66 win.
The game was close through the first half, then in the third quarter, the Wildcats exploded for 31 points to give them a big lead. They closed it out at the century mark in the fourth quarter to win the game.
Six Wildcats were in double digits. They were led by Ty Clark with 23 points. Gabe Clark with 20, Ellis with 18, Rickett with 12, Logan Shuler with 12 and Eli Aguilar with 10.
Lady Wildcats
The Andrews girls varsity team split their week with a loss at Hayesville to start the week, but they closed out the week by defeating Swain County.
Their game on Jan. 21 did not go the way they wanted. They got out to an early lead, but after the first quarter they would not see the lead again.
Hayesville began to slowly pull away as the game went on and the Lady Cats lost 45-34.
Kylie Donaldson led the team with 18 points, as she was the only Lady Cat in double digits. Knox Davis had nine points on three 3-pointers.
On Friday, they traveled to Swain County and picked up a 69-37 win. With the win, they improve to 8-8 overall on the season with a 2-2 in the conference.
Up next
Today, Andrews hosts Tuscola for its final non-conference game. Only the boys will be playing at 7 p.m., due to an illness in the Tuscola girls team.
On Friday, the Wildcats will travel to Robbinsville to take on the Black Knights for the second time this season. The girls start at 6:30 p.m., while the boys start at 8 p.m.
On Tuesday, Feb. 4, Andrews will host Murphy for the first time this season. The girls start at 6:30 p.m., while the boys start at 8 p.m. This is their first of two games.