T.A. Dugger kicks off tourney play: Boys fall in final seconds, girls roll over Patriots
Published 3:30 pm Monday, January 27, 2025
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Jr. Cyclones boys squad faced Tennessee Middle School in the opening round of the TMSAA Area 1 Playoffs.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Jr. Cyclones boys squad faced Tennessee Middle School in the opening round of the TMSAA Area 1 Playoffs.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Jr. Cyclones boys squad faced Tennessee Middle School in the opening round of the TMSAA Area 1 Playoffs.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Jr. Cyclones boys squad faced Tennessee Middle School in the opening round of the TMSAA Area 1 Playoffs.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Jr. Cyclones boys squad faced Tennessee Middle School in the opening round of the TMSAA Area 1 Playoffs.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Jr. Cyclones guard Max Fields rises for a jumper. Fields finished the game with seven points.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Stella Holtsclaw battles through defenders as she drives into the lane.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Crisp ball movement leads to open shots as the Jr. Lady Cyclones build a commanding lead heading into the final period.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Kiana Adams uses her body to create space as she goes up for a shot.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Meadow Pittman works hard under the basket to get open.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Aubry Szabo pauses as the Liberty Bell defender flies past.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Samira Ebanks goes to the floor, grasping for the loose ball.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Kiana Adams dribbles up the court, displaying her quickness with the ball.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent The Lady Cyclones start to pull away in the third period as good ball movement creates open space.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Head Junior Cyclones coach Billy Etter addresses his team before the start of the boys’ game.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Chase Taylor works around the rim for two of his 10 points.
Ron Marvel/Star Correspondent Trey Mathena spins around the defender and takes a three-pointer.
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By Ron Marvel
Star Correspondent
The TSSAA Area 1-AAA Tournament started Saturday at John Sevier Middle School with the T.A. Dugger boys, bracketed as a six seed, taking on the Tennessee Middle School Vikings, the three seed, and the girls, a three seed, taking on the Liberty Bell Patriots, a six seed. When the dust settled, the boys saw their season come to an end in a nail-biter, while the Jr. Lady Cyclones advanced to a semifinal game and await the winner of the Greeneville and Indian Trail game.
Boys: Vikings 41, Cyclones 36
An argument could be made that the boys squad won three out of the four periods played versus the Vikings. Unfortunately, the one period they lost — the second one — was by a lopsided score of 15-3. That margin simply proved to be too much to overcome.
In the early going, the Vikings jumped out to an early 6-2 lead, but the Cyclones battled back as Chase Taylor worked hard inside on both ends of the court. His two free throws in the final seconds knotted the game at 13-all as the first period ended.
The second and decisive period featured six unforced turnovers by the Cyclones, which allowed the Vikings to build a 12-point lead. Eli Phillips hit a three-pointer — the only points the Cyclones scored in the period — to cut the Vikings’ lead to 10, but the Vikings’ Tyler Kinch hit a 12-foot jumper at the buzzer to push the lead back to 12.
The Cyclones turned up the defensive pressure, cut down on turnovers, and slashed the Vikings’ lead to just four points in the third period when Ryan Garland hit a cutting Stephen Gorby to make it 33-29 going into the final period.
The Cyclones made it a one-possession game several times in the fourth period but could never take the lead. With just seconds left and trailing 39-36, Head Coach Billy Etter called a timeout for the Cyclones to set up the final play. A pass that was slightly high skipped off the fingers of Chase Taylor, who was working down low, and the Vikings bled the final seconds off the clock.
Carson Lyons led the Cyclones with 12 points, while Taylor added 10.
After the game, Coach Etter reflected on his 2024-25 squad. “A lot of character in that group. You have to have self-belief. We talked about what that meant this week. We regrouped at halftime. We were the better team in the second half. Elizabethton High School is going to benefit from that group of kids for years to come. I’m super proud of those kids,” Etter shared.
Girls: Cyclones 40, Patriots 23
Kiana Adams scored 23 points as the Jr. Lady Cyclones methodically pulled away from Liberty Bell. The third period saw the Cyclones distance themselves as they opened up a 37-11 lead before Coach Matt Fox pulled many of his starters to give reserves playing time.
Adams scored 10 points in the opening period to pace the Lady Cyclones to a 14-6 first-period lead. Neither team did much for the majority of the second period. Stella Holtsclaw hit Adams with an eye-popping assist to push the Cyclones’ lead to 20-8 at the 2:15 mark, and the Lady Cyclones went into the break up 24-10.
Coming out of the locker room, the Lady Cyclones put the clamps on any kind of Patriots rally. “We did better with communicating and moving on defense. We reacted to that first pass in the third period better,” Coach Fox said.
Rylee Minton hit a long three-pointer midway through the third period, and the rout was on. The Lady Cyclones outrebounded the Patriots, grabbing 39 boards in the game. Besides Adams, Minton chipped in nine points for the contest.
After the game, Kiana Adams reflected on her team’s play. “Total team effort today, making good passes and working to get open. I worked hard to get open, and we are coached to lean into a defender’s body when we go up,” Adams said.
