With the Toe River Conference Tournament beginning later this week, the Avery Middle School Panthers and Cranberry Middle School Wildcats played its final full week of regular season basketball.
On Monday, Nov. 29, the Wildcats traveled to Harris to tangle with the Blue Devils. In the girls contest, the Lady Devils took charge early with an 18-4 scoring run and never looked back in a 43-17 win. Sierra Jones led Cranberry with seven points, with six from Bethany Burleson.
In the second half of the doubleheader, the Wildcat boys team hung tough throughout the contest, but dropped a close 31-27 decision to the Blue Devils.
CMS played tough defense through one quarter and took a 6-3 lead after six minutes. The strong play continued as the Wildcats led 14-8 at intermission.
CMS continued to dominate the action in the third quarter, outscoring the Devils 9-7 to carry a 23-15 lead into the final quarter. Over the last six minutes Harris rallied behind the hot hand of Drey Phillips, who drained a pair of three-pointers to bring the Blue Devils all the way back for the four-point win.
Tyler Pitman paced the Wildcats with 12 points, with six from Cainan Singleton, five from Levi McIntosh, and four from Caleb Stansberry.
On Tuesday, Nov. 30, the AMS squads hosted the Cloudland Highlanders in a pair of exciting games.
In the girls contest the game was knotted at six points each after one period and remained close throughout the game. AMS used an 8-4 scoring edge in the second stanza to lead 14-10 at halftime.
In the third period the Lady Lander defense stepped up, holding AMS to just two points on a Christian Burleson basket while scoring six itself to tie the contest at 16-16 entering the final six minutes of play.
The final quarter was nip-and-tuck throughout, but Cloudland held on for a 22-21 win. Kylie Polsgrove paced AMS with seven points, with five from Burleson and four from Destiny Ollis.
In the night cap it was a matchup of undefeated teams as Avery and Cloudland squared off. The Landers entered the contest with a long winning streak, but the Panthers came up big in earning an impressive 47-39 non-conference win.
Cloudland took a 9-8 lead after one quarter of action with balanced scoring by four separate players. In the second stanza, however, AMS roared back to outscore Cloudland 13-7 and lead 21-16 at halftime, as sixth man Dylan Bauer came up big with seven points in the period.
Coming out of the locker rooms, Cloudland showed its fighting spirit, rallying to trail by just a pair at 29-27 going into the final six minutes of play. Over the final period AMS poured on the offense, scorching the nets for 18 points to pull away for the win.
“Cloudland was a strong ballclub that handled the ball really well. We had to play our very best, and that helps us get better. We were able to hang on for an important win. It wasn’t a conference game, but it will help us become a better club,” AMS boys head coach Gordon Polsgrove said after the win.
Kobe Pittman paced the Panthers with 15 points, with 10 points apiece from Tre Jackson, James Stewart, and Bauer.
On Thursday, Dec. 2, the Wildcats and Panthers tangled in the second of its two regular season matchups. AMS honored its eighth-grade players and cheerleaders between the girls and boys games, recognizing the two years the student-athletes contributed to the school’s athletic programs.
In the girls game, the Lady Panthers and Lady Wildcats played a tight first half as AMS held a narrow 15-11 lead at intermission. The Lady Panthers pulled away in the third quarter with an 8-4 scoring run to lead 23-15 after three stanzas, and scored its highest point total of 14 in the final quarter to pull away for a 37-23 win.
Polsgrove netted 16 points to lead AMS with seven points from Christian Burleson, six from Ollis and five from Anna Gragg.
For the Lady Wildcats, Bethany Burleson led the way with eight points, with five points from Brandy Banner and four points scored by Emma Shell.
“They just outplayed us tonight, pure and simple. We didn’t play well and they played great,” Tilley said following the game. “There really wasn’t much we could do.”
In the final game of the night, the AMS boys were dominant in a 71-31 win over CMS. The Panthers opened the game with a 19-8 scoring run behind seven points in the period from Pittman. CMS looked to stay within striking distance behind eight first-half points from Tyler Pitman, but AMS was determined to keep the Wildcats at bay.
AMS outscored CMS 23-2 in the second quarter to lead 42-10 at intermission and went on to claim the victory in its final regular season home contest of 2010.
Three Panthers reached double-figures as nine players in all registered points on the scoreboard. Pittman paced the Panthers with 16, with 14 from Dalton Tennant and 10 from Stewart. Pitman led the way for Cranberry with 11 points, as teammate Jeremiah Vance chipped in with five and both Chandler Stansberry and Zack Guinn scored four points each.
“Avery is a very good team, the best in the conference,” Tilley said after the game. “I really wasn’t expecting them to defeat us that badly but they did. They shot very well and we shot very poorly. We just couldn’t play with them tonight.”
“We came out and got after them early,” Polsgrove said of his team’s effort against the Wildcats. “We were determined to get out quick after they led us down there in the first game. We had a great balanced scoring effort.”
For Avery, it remained perfect with a 9-0 record in Toe River Conference play and should receive the top seed and a bye in the conference tournament hosted by the Panthers later this week. Although AMS is a prohibitive favorite to capture the tournament title, Polsgrove and his team see each opponent as a challenge.
“Harris plays hard. Cane River plays hard. Bowman is under a new coach and was better the second time against us than the first game. All those teams scare me, but we have to take care of the ball and we have to play our game,” Polsgrove said. “We have to make sure we don’t get outworked, and I have to believe our chances are good. I’m optimistic, but you know what they say about beating a team three times in a season.”
Read next week’s edition of The Avery Journal-Times for a full recap of this week’s Toe River Conference Tournament.
On Monday, Nov. 29, the Wildcats traveled to Harris to tangle with the Blue Devils. In the girls contest, the Lady Devils took charge early with an 18-4 scoring run and never looked back in a 43-17 win. Sierra Jones led Cranberry with seven points, with six from Bethany Burleson.
In the second half of the doubleheader, the Wildcat boys team hung tough throughout the contest, but dropped a close 31-27 decision to the Blue Devils.
CMS played tough defense through one quarter and took a 6-3 lead after six minutes. The strong play continued as the Wildcats led 14-8 at intermission.
CMS continued to dominate the action in the third quarter, outscoring the Devils 9-7 to carry a 23-15 lead into the final quarter. Over the last six minutes Harris rallied behind the hot hand of Drey Phillips, who drained a pair of three-pointers to bring the Blue Devils all the way back for the four-point win.
Tyler Pitman paced the Wildcats with 12 points, with six from Cainan Singleton, five from Levi McIntosh, and four from Caleb Stansberry.
On Tuesday, Nov. 30, the AMS squads hosted the Cloudland Highlanders in a pair of exciting games.
In the girls contest the game was knotted at six points each after one period and remained close throughout the game. AMS used an 8-4 scoring edge in the second stanza to lead 14-10 at halftime.
In the third period the Lady Lander defense stepped up, holding AMS to just two points on a Christian Burleson basket while scoring six itself to tie the contest at 16-16 entering the final six minutes of play.
The final quarter was nip-and-tuck throughout, but Cloudland held on for a 22-21 win. Kylie Polsgrove paced AMS with seven points, with five from Burleson and four from Destiny Ollis.
In the night cap it was a matchup of undefeated teams as Avery and Cloudland squared off. The Landers entered the contest with a long winning streak, but the Panthers came up big in earning an impressive 47-39 non-conference win.
Cloudland took a 9-8 lead after one quarter of action with balanced scoring by four separate players. In the second stanza, however, AMS roared back to outscore Cloudland 13-7 and lead 21-16 at halftime, as sixth man Dylan Bauer came up big with seven points in the period.
“Cloudland was a strong ballclub that handled the ball really well. We had to play our very best, and that helps us get better. We were able to hang on for an important win. It wasn’t a conference game, but it will help us become a better club,” AMS boys head coach Gordon Polsgrove said after the win.
Kobe Pittman paced the Panthers with 15 points, with 10 points apiece from Tre Jackson, James Stewart, and Bauer.
On Thursday, Dec. 2, the Wildcats and Panthers tangled in the second of its two regular season matchups. AMS honored its eighth-grade players and cheerleaders between the girls and boys games, recognizing the two years the student-athletes contributed to the school’s athletic programs.
In the girls game, the Lady Panthers and Lady Wildcats played a tight first half as AMS held a narrow 15-11 lead at intermission. The Lady Panthers pulled away in the third quarter with an 8-4 scoring run to lead 23-15 after three stanzas, and scored its highest point total of 14 in the final quarter to pull away for a 37-23 win.
Polsgrove netted 16 points to lead AMS with seven points from Christian Burleson, six from Ollis and five from Anna Gragg.
For the Lady Wildcats, Bethany Burleson led the way with eight points, with five points from Brandy Banner and four points scored by Emma Shell.
“They just outplayed us tonight, pure and simple. We didn’t play well and they played great,” Tilley said following the game. “There really wasn’t much we could do.”
In the final game of the night, the AMS boys were dominant in a 71-31 win over CMS. The Panthers opened the game with a 19-8 scoring run behind seven points in the period from Pittman. CMS looked to stay within striking distance behind eight first-half points from Tyler Pitman, but AMS was determined to keep the Wildcats at bay.
AMS outscored CMS 23-2 in the second quarter to lead 42-10 at intermission and went on to claim the victory in its final regular season home contest of 2010.
Three Panthers reached double-figures as nine players in all registered points on the scoreboard. Pittman paced the Panthers with 16, with 14 from Dalton Tennant and 10 from Stewart. Pitman led the way for Cranberry with 11 points, as teammate Jeremiah Vance chipped in with five and both Chandler Stansberry and Zack Guinn scored four points each.
“We came out and got after them early,” Polsgrove said of his team’s effort against the Wildcats. “We were determined to get out quick after they led us down there in the first game. We had a great balanced scoring effort.”
For Avery, it remained perfect with a 9-0 record in Toe River Conference play and should receive the top seed and a bye in the conference tournament hosted by the Panthers later this week. Although AMS is a prohibitive favorite to capture the tournament title, Polsgrove and his team see each opponent as a challenge.
“Harris plays hard. Cane River plays hard. Bowman is under a new coach and was better the second time against us than the first game. All those teams scare me, but we have to take care of the ball and we have to play our game,” Polsgrove said. “We have to make sure we don’t get outworked, and I have to believe our chances are good. I’m optimistic, but you know what they say about beating a team three times in a season.”
Read next week’s edition of The Avery Journal-Times for a full recap of this week’s Toe River Conference Tournament.
