BY BRIAN HAMILTON
KODAK – Due to inclement weather, Northview Academy and Cocke County didn’t find out whether their game, which would decide first place in Class 3A District 3, would be played or not on Tuesday until that afternoon. The school board was able to approve the game to be played, however, with the tip-off being moved forward one hour to 5 p.m. Both teams looked rusty throughout the game, but Cocke County seemed to shake that rust in the fourth quarter, while Northview never seemed to be able to.
Kiley Norwood (30) pulls down a rebound over Cocke County’s Ava Wheeler (2). Photo by Brian Hamilton
“It was an ugly game both ways. I didn’t feel like either team played exceptionally well for the first three quarters,” Northview head coach Brooke Shelley said. “Coming in, neither team got to practice yesterday. We weren’t in school today. Are we playing? Are we not? There’s so many factors that I think kind of created that ugly-type game. I would love to say that was the reason (for our play), but they’re in the same boat. Cocke County was dealing with the same thing. I think it just comes down to that mental toughness, where, when we put on our jersey and we step across those white lines, we’ve got to be ready to play.”
Northview took control of the game early and led for most of the first half before the teams traded leads and punches throughout the third quarter. Cocke County would outlast the Lady Cougars in the fourth quarter, however, winning the quarter 14-2 for a 48-37 win and a third consecutive district title.
“When you’ve got great players, sometimes you’ve got to just stay out of the way,” Cocke County head coach Boddie Bible said after the game. “That’s a testament to our girls and (assistant) coach Sinard. I’ve got a 40-year veteran sitting over there on the bench with me and there’s not many smarter than him, so he’s a big part of what we do. I’m happy for (the girls), but this was just one of our goals. Our main goal is — we want to win the last one. We want to figure out how to still be playing at the end, and it starts tomorrow at practice.”
Northview’s Shelley was not particular happy with how her team finished the game, especially with the stakes at hand, scoring only two points in the fourth quarter.
“In the fourth quarter, I felt like Cocke County came out and they wanted the ball. They wanted to make the big shots, so I challenged the team and I said, ‘Somebody’s got to want to make big shots in big moments.’ It’s easy to make a big shot when you’re up by 50, but can you make a big shot, in a big moment, in a big game? In the fourth quarter, nobody wanted the ball. We were passing up shots and air-balling free throws. We just didn’t want the ball and that’s where it comes down to mental toughness. I believe we’ve got the talent to make another deep run (at state), but we’ve got to be mentally tougher.”
Kiley Norwood put Northview Academy on the board first with a steal and layup to give the Lady Cougars a 2-0 lead, but four consecutive free throws by Karmine Carmichael would put Cocke County in front 4-2. Natavia Alber would tie the game at 4-4 on a layup with 4:35 left in the first quarter.
Brookelyn Clevenger (00) secures a rebound as Chloe Henshaw. (3) looks on. Photo by Brian Hamilton
Northview would go on a 10-0 run after a pair of Norwood free throws and three consecutive baskets by Alber, which put the Lady Cougars in front 12-4 with just under three minutes left in the quarter.
Cocke County would score its first field goal when Blake Clevenger hit a three with 2:15 remaining in the first quarter, cutting the Lady Red deficit to 12-7. Another three-pointer by Chloe Niethammer would make the score 12-10 with 1:44 to go. Northview Academy would lead 14-12 at the end of the first quarter.
Chloe Henshaw would sink a three to open the second quarter, giving Northview Academy a 17-12 advantage, but Ellie Proffitt would answer with a layup to make the score 17-14. A long two-point basket by Alber would stretch the Lady Cougars’ lead back to 19-14 wih 5:38 left in the first half.
Cocke County would pull to within 21-20 when Blake Clevenger was fouled and hit a pair of free throws with just under four minutes remaining in the quarter. The Lady Red would take their first lead since 4-2 when Carmichael scored on a layup and was fouled. Carmichael missed the free throw attempt, but Cocke County led 22-21.
The two teams traded leads throughout the rest of the second quarter, but a Carmichael layup with two seconds left gave the Lady Red a 26-25 advantage going into the half.
Northview regained the lead early in the third quarter, but a three by Ava Wheeler put Cocke County back in front 29-27. A triple by Nora Auten would regain the lead for the Lady Cougars, at 30-29, midway through the third period.
Brooke Clevenger answered with a three-pointer to put Cocke County back in front 32-30, but a drive and layup by Alber would tie the game at 32-32 with 1:28 remaining.
A pair of Carmichael free throws put Cocke County back in front 34-32, but Alber grabbed a rebound amongst four Lady Red players and scored the putback in the waning seconds of the third quarter to give Northview a 35-34 lead going into the final frame.
The fourth quarter was all Cocke County, however, as the Lady Red outscored Northview 14-2 in the final period.
Northview’s Nora Auten (4) tries to find space as Cocke County’s Karmine Carmichael (23) and Ellie Proffitt (13) close in. Photo by Brian Hamilton
Brooke Clevenger opened the quarter with a three which give Cocke County a 37-35 lead — a lead which the Lady Red would never give back.
Cocke County went up 42-35 on a pair of Carmichael layups with just over five minutes remaining, but an Alber layup would pull the Lady Cougars back to within 42-37 with 4:45 remaining. That was the last points Northview would score in the contest.
Niethammer scored a layup with 1:10 remaining to give Cocke County a 48-37 lead, but Northview continued to battle. After a Lady Cougars miss, Kiley Norwood would take a charge to turn the ball back over to Northview with 43 seconds left. Norwood’s three on the other end was blocked by Carmichael, however, as Cocke County went on to win 48-37 and take the district title for the third consecutive season.
“Every time we play Northview, we know what they do, and they know what we do,” Bible said. “It just comes down to who’s tougher and makes more plays. In the third quarter, they got to many second chance opportunities and in the fourth quarter, we just locked them down. I think we guarded a minute or minute-and-a-half and they weren’t able to get a shot off, and that’s a testament to our girls why they’re successful.”
Northview’s Natavia Alber led all scorers with 22 points in a losing effort, while Karmine Carmichael led Cocke County with 16 points. Brooke Clevenger added 10 points for the Lady Red, while Blake Clevenger had eight.
“We were a little sluggish there early, but she got rebounds and really kept us in it. In the fourth quarter, she guarded relentlessly,” Bible said of Carmichael’s play.
Outside of Alber’s 22, no Northview player scored more than four points, as Kiley Norwood finished with four, on one field goal and a pair of free throws in the first quarter.
“She wants to shoot it and she’s a great shooter, but I thought Blake (Clevenger) did a good job on her most of the night,” Bible said about defending Norwood. “We were trying to get them off that three-point line and Brooke (Shelley) did the same thing to us tonight. Hats off to Blake on that, she understood her assignment and did a really nice job.”
Cocke County (24-3, 9-0 Class 3A District 3) will host Cosby (11-15) on Friday night. The Lady Red have won 11-straight since a 55-49 loss to Knoxville Webb in the Andrew Johnson Bank Ladies Classic on December 29.
Northview Academy (17-3, 5-2 Class 3A District 3) will travel to Carter (0-17, 0-7 District 3) on Friday night for a district contest.