Robbinsville Middle boys punch ticket to finals; girls eliminated
Robbinsville – It was over before it really got started.
Following a 10-day layoff, the Robbinsville Middle School Black Knights (No. 1 seed) showed no signs of rust when they hit the floor to duke it out with the Andrews Wildcats (No. 4) in Jan. 18’s Smoky Mountain Conference Tournament semifinals, leaping to a 20-4 lead and never looking back in an 53-22 win.
The win cemented a finals match-up between Robbinsville (15-0) and Hiwassee Dam/Ranger (No. 3), which took place after Wednesday’s press deadline. The Knights are on the cusp of their first perfect season since the program went unbeaten from 2011-12.
“I’m glad our athletic director (Stuart Nelms) did the right thing and moved everything around for the safety of the players and fans,” said Robbinsvill head coach Jonathan Allison. “I am pleased with the way we played against Andrews, considering the long break in-between games.”
Leading the cruise to victory was Cameron Allison, who finished with 19 points. Landen Eddings and Bam Nelms totaled nine each, while Elijah Kirkland dropped seven on Andrews.
Rounding out the effort were Xamuel Wachacha with six points and Eli Lambert recording three.
Hiwassee Dam/Ranger provided the only tournament upset at press time, upending the No. 2-seeded Cherokee Braves 60-52 in the semifinals.
Robbinsville advanced to the tournament finals last year, but fell to Cherokee in the title game.
Lady Knights
Even with an arduous task ahead of them, the heart of the middle school girls shined through in a 60-48, semifinal loss to Cherokee (No. 1 seed).
“I’m super proud of them. They have worked their tails off,” said head coach Brittany Snider. “The sky’s the limit for this group.”
Robbinsville (No. 4, 7-7) hung tough from the opening tip. The game was tied 6-6 in the first quarter, before the Lady Braves went on an 11-0 sprint to pull away by the end of the segment. Undaunted, the Lady Knights outpaced the regular-season champs 16-11 in the second, cutting the deficit to 28-22 at halftime.
Unfortunately, Cherokee proved to be too quick on defense and too accurate on shots; in turn, Robbinsville could never really get into an offensive groove during the second half.
Robbinsville’s concluding scoreline was led by Zaelyn Phillips, who posted 16 in the loss. Daphne Barlow finished the evening with 14, while Zayleigh Chekeleelee had eight.
Cassidy Sudderth recorded six, while both Bella Coats and Aaliyah Wolfe connected for a basket each.
Cherokee faced Murphy (No. 2) in the girls finals after Wednesday’s press deadline. The Bulldogs squeaked by Andrews (No. 3) in the semifinals, 45-44.