In a showdown between two top teams in the 13th Region, the Whitley County Colonels defeated the Pineville Mountain Lions 86-80 Friday night in Williamsburg.
The matchup had all the trappings of a regional tournament matchup, complete with both teams making big runs, completing comebacks, and making big shots all game long.
The Colonels (5-1) were led by their tandem of Evan and Danny Ellis. The duo scored 27 and 23 points respectively. Jackson Petrey added 19 and Lucas Queener tossed in 11.
Pineville (4-2) was led by Ashton Moser with 24 points and Sawyer Thompson with 20. Wyatt Caldwell added 11 and Sam Caldwell scored 10.
The Colonels led 19-17 after the first quarter, but the Lions would gain a 42-37 advantage going into halftime. Whitley regained the lead 61-59 after three periods.
Pineville will return to play Wednesday evening in the Smoky Mountain Classic in Gatlinburg against Virginia power George Wythe. Whitley County hosts Rye Cove on Saturday night.
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The Colonels also edged the Lions 44-36 in the junior game. Riley Fuson led Whitley with 15 points.
Anderson Gentry led Pineville with 18 points. Ethan Jackson added nine. Zander Garrison tallied four. Tyler Jackson chipped in with three, and Gabriel Kells tossed in two.
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Whitley County (86) — Lucas Queener 11, Bryson Mahan 4, Shane Parker 2, Danny Ellis 23, Jackson Petrey 19, Evan Ellis 27.
Pineville (80) —Sawyer Thompson 20, Ashton Moser 24, Kaiden Robbins 2, Zander Garrison 5, Wyatt Caldwell 11, Logunn Littles 8, Sam Caldwell 10.
PIneville 17 25 17 21 — 80
Whitley County 19 18 24 25 — 86
