Andrews – In front of a packed gymnasium, the Andrews varsity girls and boys basketball teams defeated Murphy in their first meeting of the season.
Both games were a battle between in-county rivals with Smoky Mountain Conference implications on the line when they faced off on Feb. 4.
Boys varsity
The first points of the game were scored after they went back and forth early. Two minutes in, Gabe Clark hit a mid-range jump shot to give Andrews the lead, but Murphy immediate went down and scored.
Murphy then jumped out to a 10-5 lead before Andrews battled back to tie the game at 10. Murphy got the lead back, but with 19 seconds left Gabe Clark hit a 3-pointer to give Andrews the lead heading into the second quarter.
With each bucket scored, fans of each team loudly cheered.
It was more back-and-forth basketball in the second quarter, as the two rivals fought for the lead. Late in the second quarter, the Wildcats took a lead and maintained at 29-23 into halftime.
During the second quarter, the Murphy and Andrews students sections began going back and forth, adding to the rivalry.
Andrews maintained the lead early and had the first lead over 10 points in the game just two minutes into the third quarter. To close out the third period, Gab Clark hit a mid-range buzzer beater to give Andrews a 39-30 lead heading into the final frame.
With the game on the line, they played a fast-paced fourth quarter. With Andrews continuing to lead, the student sections exchanged chants as the gym got even louder.
With five minutes left, Ryan Payne of Murphy had a fast break, but Kegan Ellis caught up to him and blocked the shot. Ellis’ block was right in front of the Wildcats’ student section, which went wild.
The Dogs mounted a late comeback with Cale Harger, Brady Grant and Tyler Payne all hitting 3-pointers. With less than two minutes left, Cale Harger hit another 3-pointer to cut Murphy’s deficit to four points.
To combat that, the Wildcats started passing the ball to slow the game down and maintain their lead. Murphy began to foul in the final minute to stop the clock, but Andrews converted foul shots to extend their lead.
The Wildcats went on to win 55-45 in their first meeting of the season.
The Cats were led by Gabe Clark, who had 27 points. He made five 3-pointers and converted six free throws.
Cale Harger led the Dogs with 15 points. Tyler Payne was also in double digits with 11 points.
Girls varsity
Like the boys game, the Lady Dogs and Lady Wildcats’ game was also a back-and-forth affair.
The Lady Dogs jumped out to an early 5-2 lead, but the Wildcats fought back to tie it at six. The game continued with multiple lead changes before Kylie Donaldson hit a 3-pointer to give Andrews a one-point lead with four seconds left in the first quarter.
Murphy immediately got the lead back as Julia Dockery hit an early 3-pointer in the second quarter. After more lead changes, Andrews took a four-point lead with four minutes left in the second quarter.
Late in the second quarter, Dockery nailed a 3-pointer to give the Dogs the lead back. Chanteah Rattler then made a layup to tie the game at 22. In the final minute, Donaldson made a layup to put Andrews up heading into halftime.
The Wildcats began to slowly pull away in the third quarter, but the game was still close. In the final minute, the Lady Cats built a five-point lead to take a 35-30 lead to the fourth quarter.
In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, it stayed close. As the clock counted down, Andrews got the first 10-point lead of the game on a Knox Davis 3-pointer.
The fans got loud in the final minute, as the Lady Dogs began to full-court press and pick up the pace of the game despite trailing. The press resulted in a steal, but the Lady Dogs couldn’t convert the score.
The Lady Wildcats maintained the lead and won 55-39 to defeat the Lady Bulldogs in their first meeting this season.
Andrews was led by Donaldson, who scored 21 points – eight coming in the second quarter. Knox Davis was also in double digits with 10 points.
Julia Dockery led Murphy with 16 points. Cayla Geer had nine points on three 3-pointers, while Kennedy White had seven points with two 3-pointers.
The Bulldogs and Wildcats will face-off yet again Thursday in their season finale as both teams look to pick up the win.