Region 1-AA Boys Cyclones fall short against talented Rebel team, 48-47
Published 12:28 am Tuesday, March 3, 2020
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BY IVAN SANDERS
STAR SPORTS EDITOR
ivan.sanders@elizabethton.com
The Elizabethton Cyclones knew that their first-round quarterfinal game against the South Greene Rebels was in no way going to be an easy game as the Rebels were already going to be fired up about being upset in their district tournament and forced to travel as the Rebels have won over 20 games on the season.
Indeed that proved out as the Rebels were ready to challenge the Cyclones who were playing before a great crowd that was ready to see their team come out on top.
In the end, the Rebels managed to hold onto a seven-point edge they built in the third quarter and hold off the Cyclones to end Elizabethton’s season in a 48-47 heartbreaking loss.
South Greene’s duo of post player Fox and guard Lamb managed to score the points when needed to help the Rebels advance to the semifinals at Grainger High School Tuesday night.
Fox led all Rebel scorers with 15 while Lamb finished on his heels with 14. Bailey’s eight points complimented the double-digit effort of his teammates.
Senior Nico Ashley gave everything he had to push his team over the top as Ashley was the game-high scorer with 19 points. His effort, including diving after a loose ball and pushing it ahead to a teammate for an easy layup in the closing minutes of the game, epitomized his final game as a Cyclone on the hardwood.
Jake Roberts finished with 12 points, all coming from beyond the three-point arc. William Willocks totaled seven while Parker Hughes finished with four points.
Nicholas Wilson came off the bench and added valuable minutes with three points. Donta Earnest collected two points.
“We got down seven points with a team that does a really good job with their defensive scheme in that matchup zone they run,” said Cyclone head coach Lucas Honeycutt. “We prepared for that over the course of the last few days. In not seeing that all year and then trying to figure out how you are going to attack it is sometimes difficult.
“We struggled at times with that and I thought our kids did a really good job trying to feed off the crowd’s energy. They made some plays and put themselves in a position but some things just didn’t go our way. Their kids did a really good job and are well-coached. They are always in the right position and they are impressive as far as that goes.
“We could have folded but we kept coming and just fell short.”