Devyn Martin

Rebels take down Morristown West behind Martin dunkfest

BY BRIAN HAMILTON KNOXVILLE – Devyn Martin dunked the first two points of the game. Then he dunked the next two. The senior standout dunked frequently on Monday night, totaling five slams in the contest. Morristown West had no answer for Knox West’s size, as Martin and fellow senior Kevin Jack were able to have their way in the frontcourt and on the glass, as the Rebels came away with a 74-53 win. The win was a huge morale builder for West after having over one week off to bask in its last minute defeat in the Sevierville Winterfest Shootout …

Knoxville West

West loses late lead, falls to Lipscomb Academy in Winterfest Shootout finals

BY BRIAN HAMILTON SEVIERVILLE – Knox West jumped out to an early lead and led most of the way during the Winterfest Shootout finals against Lipscomb Academy, but were unable to hold onto the lead late. The Rebels clung to a 63-62 lead with less than a minute left until Lipscomb’s Nick Duke nailed a three with 45 seconds remaining to give the Mustangs a 65-63 advantage. West was never able to score again in the waning moments, falling 68-63. “They’re a very talented bunch and we knew that going in,” West head coach Tommy Eggleston said after the game. …

Gatlinburg-Pittman uses second-half comeback to defeat Notre Dame and win Christmas Classic

BY BRIAN HAMILTON GATLINBURG – It looked as it Gatlinburg-Pittman was going to fade into the abyss after a three-point second quarter, which saw Notre Dame take a 7-point lead into intermission. The Highlanders would not go quietly into the night, however, as Gatlinburg-Pittman outscored the Fighting Irish 22-12 in the third quarter and 16-8 in the fourth quarter to win the Smoky Mountain Christmas Classic 56-45. “The problem was that we couldn’t make a shot,” Gatlinburg-Pittman coach Rashid Moore said. “We were like 1-for-12 from three at halftime and it didn’t get much better in the third quarter. Once …

Rebels fall to Cookeville 70-60 in first state tournament since 2015

BY BRIAN HAMILTON MURFREESBORO – Nobody expected Maryville to be here in November. No one, but themselves, that is. Maryville advanced to the state tournament in 2020, but with their game against Hillsboro being scheduled on March 18, they were unable to play due to the COVID-19 shutdown. Wednesday was the first time that the Rebels were able to actually play in the state tournament since 2015, when they fell to Blackman 65-45 in the Elite 8. The result was not much different nine years later, as the Rebels fell to a sharpshooting Cookeville team 70-60, in a game that …

Morristown East - Rossview

Morristown East’s historic run ends at the hands of Rossview in the state quarterfinals

BY BRIAN HAMILTON MURFREESBORO – Both Rossview and Morristown East entered the game in unfamiliar territory, as the Hawks were playing in the school’s first Elite Eight in its 23-year history and the Hurricanes snapped a 45-year drought, advancing to state for the first time since 1979. The teams both traded punches early, but it was Rossview that took over in the second half, capitalizing on its opportunity, and picking up a 64-43 win in its first state tournament appearance. While Morristown East lost to a very talented Rossview team, the Hurricanes left the floor at the Murphy Center with …

Sevier County outlasts Patriots in defensive slugfest 45-35

BY BRIAN HAMILTON SEVIERVILLE – Sevier County came into Friday night’s game down two starters in Jayden Barton and Bryson Hedrick, but the Smoky Bears were able to score just enough and rely on solid defense to come away with a 45-35 region win over Jefferson County. “That was a hungry team over there,” Sevier County head coach Ken Wright said of Jefferson County. “They came out and they played hard and they gave us everything they had. My hat’s off to them. They scrapped hard. They played with a lot of pride tonight and I’m glad our guys were …

Cocke-Seymour

Cocke County overcomes slow start to defeat Seymour 88-75

BY BRIAN HAMILTON NEWPORT – Seymour opened the game with hot shooting and led most of the first half until Cocke County used a 13-0 run to take the lead for good later in the second quarter. The Fighting Cocks would stymie a late Seymour push to come away with an 88-75 win. “I thought, for the first time in a while, that we fought through some adversity,” Cocke County coach Casey Regan said after the game. “Credit Seymour, they came out and made a lot of shots early and I don’t think we defended particularly up to our standard, …

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 …

Walters State - Motlow State

Motlow State spoils Senators’ unbeaten season in overtime

BY BRIAN HAMILTON MORRISTOWN – Walters State saw its undefeated season slip away on Wednesday night, as the Senators had an opportunity to close out the game, leading by seven with just under three minutes left, but a 7-0 run by Motlow State sent the game to overtime, where the Bucks won 91-85 to hand Walters State its first loss of the Jerry Nichols era. “We just folded at the end of the game,” First-year Walters State coach Jerry Nichols said. “We had the game won, despite all the stuff that was going on throughout the game. I thought we …

Pigeon Forge-Gatlinburg

Gatlinburg-Pittman routes Pigeon Forge in Battle of the Tunnel

BY BRIAN HAMILTON PIGEON FORGE – In the last edition of the ‘The Battle of the Tunnel’, Ty Glasper scored 60 points in three quarters of play, as Gatlinburg-Pittman defeated Pigeon Forge 92-45 on December 5. The junior point guard was more reserved on Tuesday night, going for almost half that total (28) in an 82-40 win over the Tigers, as the Highlanders started the game on a 24-0 run. “Since we had such a big letdown on Friday (66-61 loss to Oneida), we had to go back to the basics,” Gatlinburg-Pittman coach Rashid Moore said after the game. “We …