Austin-East takes down rival Fulton 69-67 behind Cherry’s 41

BY BRIAN HAMILTON KNOXVILLE – Austin-East’s brotherly duo of Shane and Condis Cherry finished the game with a combined 58 points (Shane 41, Condis 17), outdueling Fulton’s twin tandem of Taj and Denaj Kimber, who combined for 35 points (Taj 18, Denaj 17) for a 69-67 win, as it was a packed house with standing room only inside Jody Wright Arena on Saturday afternoon. “When I took the job, I knew (the rivalry) was big, but I didn’t know it was this big,” said second-year Austin-East head coach Denard Bertram. “It’s a testament to see the stands packed with both …

Tyler Lee

Smoky Mountain Sports Boy’s Preseason Top-10

Preseason Boys Rankings Preseason Boys Rankings Fulton (18) Bearden (1) Alcoa (1) William Blount Farragut Sevier County Gatlinburg-Pittman Austin-East Morristown West Morristown East

South-Doyle vs Fulton

Historically bad shooting performance dooms Lady Kees in loss to Fulton

BY BRIAN HAMILTON KNOXVILLE – It might not be too rare to see a team go scoreless in the first quarter, but for a team to go scoreless in the first half and for almost three quarters, it is definitely a rarity. That’s what happened at Jody Wright Arena on Thursday night. The Lady Kees had multiple shots and layups that just seemed to either bounce or roll off the front rim. For most of the game, it appeared that there was some supernatural force diverting South-Doyle’s shots anywhere but through the net. Credit Fulton’s swarming defense just as much …

Alcoa-Fulton

Lady Tornadoes overcome slow start to defeat Fulton 53-40

BY BRIAN HAMILTON ALCOA – The Lady Tornadoes overcame a slow start offensively to pick up a 53-40 win over Fulton, as Karli Haworth scored 13 of her 21 in the second half and Macie Ridge scored 12 of her 19 after halftime. “There weren’t a whole lot of x’s-and-o’s adjustments (at halftime), but we did go over some things that we didn’t execute very well,” Alcoa head coach David Baumann said. “Not to take any credit or anything, but the girls just hit shots and that’s the difference. We started hitting some shots and we got a little bit …

Jahvin Carter

Alcoa overcomes 17-point second half deficit to defeat #6 Fulton

BY BRIAN HAMILTON ALCOA – Fulton came into Alcoa on Thursday night and led the Tornadoes by as many as 17 in the third quarter, but Jahvin Carter score 24 of his 32 points in the second half to pull out a 57-56 come from behind win over the Falcons, who came in as the 6th-ranked team in Class 3A. “We’ve had our struggles the whole season and we’ve been down and out and given into frustration,” Alcoa head coach Ryan Collins said. “I’m so proud of the kids tonight, because they didn’t take that path tonight. They chose a …