Red Boiling Springs-Clay County

Red Boiling Springs jumped out to a 22-point lead in the third quarter of Tuesday’s 7-A boys consolation game, and held off a furious Clay County rally to win 81-73 in the battle of the Bulldogs.

The first quarter proved to be the big difference in the game, as RBS came out red-hot to build a 31-12 lead at the end of the frame.

Clay County managed to cut into that lead in the second, as they trimmed it down to 16 before the break on a Hayden Adams bucket on their last possession.

The Bulldogs then used a pair of Weston Birdwell free throws to cut the lead down to just 14, but a 13-5 run from RBS gave them their biggest lead of the game at 57-35. That’s where Clay County’s rally began, as they went on a 24-2 run that spanned the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth, capped by a Lance Burchett three that knotted the game at 59-apiece.

The next six points belonged to RBS however, as baskets from Colton Copas, Chris Hackney and Joseph Birdwell gave the Bulldogs a 65-59 lead and forced a Clay County timeout. From there, RBS controlled the remainder of the fourth and closed out the eight-point victory to earn third place in District 7-A.

Copas looked every bit the part of the district MVP, as he put up a game-high 39 points on 14-19 shooting from the floor and 5-8 from three. Hackney added 16 points and Birdwell finished with 11 of his own in the win.

Nolan Adams led a balanced attack for Clay with 14 points, while Burchett and Andrew Smith each finished with 12 points.

Clay will now go on the road to Jo Byrns on Saturday, while RBS will head to East Robertson for the region quarterfinals.

Pickett County-Gordonsville

The Bobcats battled back from a seven-point halftime deficit to claim the 7-A District Tournament Championship with their 61-52 win over Gordonsville.

It was the Eli Adams and Brodie Sykes show early on, as the Tigers used their advantage with those two in the post to build an early 12-7 lead. Pickett County battled back and tied the game at 12-all to end the first, but Gordonsville once against jumped out to seven-point lead thanks to six points in the second from Sykes.

This allowed Gordonsville to take a 26-19 lead into the halftime break.

Jacob Amonett took over the game in the third quarter, as he scored 18 of his game-high 29 points to give the Bobcats a four-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, and the Bobcats closed down the win from there to win the district championship.

Amonett’s 29 led all scorers, and he was named the Tournament MVP for his efforts. Nathaniel Cobb added nine points for Pickett County.

Adams finished with team-high honors for Gordonsville with 21 points.

PCHS head coach Joseph Amonett says his team had to adjust to Gordonsville’s physicality early, but once they settled into their game, he was pleased with the overall performance.

“I thought we played phenomenally, Gordonsville’s a really good team and it’s hard to beat a good team three times,” Amonett said. “These kids are like the comeback Cats, they never quit and never give up, and they believe in each other and what we’re doing.”

Jacob Amonett’s third-quarter is what ultimately propelled Pickett forward, as once he got his shot falling, there was no slowing him down.

“He’s just been phenomenal all season,” Amonett said. “He’s what a point guard should be. He gets assists when he needs to, he scores when he needs to. I just thought he did a great job.”

Pickett County will now welcome in Knowledge Academies on Saturday, while Gordonsville will host Merrol Hyde. Amonett is quick to point out that Knowledge Academies is a much better team than their finish in 8-A says, and his team will have to be ready to play.

“They finished second in that district, and their best player was suspended for the two games they lost,” Amonett said. “He’ll be back on Saturday night when we play…if you’re going to get to the State Tournament, you’ve got to beat good teams and we’ve got a big one on Saturday night.”