GRAY DEYOSports Writer

The Tullahoma Boys’ basketball team led wire to wire in their game against Central Magnet—winning the contest 77-42.

It was clear from the start of the matchup between the Wildcats and Tigers that the Wildcats’ arsenal of players had an innate advantage.

Skill-wise Central had some players that could match the craftiness of some of Tullahoma’s players, but physically they were outmatched in every which way. Austin Tinnon showcased this, by towering over Tigers’ players, as the Tullahoma big man stands at 6’9”. He was unafraid to use his advantage in the matchup against Central, scoring the second-most points in the contest with 16.

“Coach AJ Johnson and Austin spend time working on skills and game film focusing on footwork and the little details.  His confidence is growing and his jump hook is effective,” said head coach Jason Welch regarding the positive development in Tinnon’s game over the season.

The junior big who was mostly only viewed as a defensive threat early in the season for the Wildcats, has now shown that he is much more than just a shot blocker. When he gets chances around the basket he’s taking them. He’s not passing them away like he did earlier in the season, instead, he’s rising over defenders and taking the shot. This newfound confidence that he has developed around the basket, Central simply did not have an answer for it Friday night.

Senior Wildcat star player Xavier Farrell is usually the one breaking down opposing defenses for Tullahoma, but Tinnon’s offensive rebounding and scoring forced Central Magnet to send multiple bodies to try to slow him down. This made life easy for Farrell, as he often dealt with a singular defender rather than the swarms of players he had become accustomed to.

Farrell finished as the game’s leading scorer with 19 and like Tinnon and many other Wildcats, the Tigers had no answer for his physicality.

Tullahoma outscored the Tigers in all four quarters, winning each quarter by an average of 8.8 points, helping improve their record to 17-2.

They added another win to their record over the weekend against Lincoln County, getting their 18th win of the season—beating the Falcons 71-47. Khani Johnson was the Wildcat to slash through the opposing defense in this contest, scoring a season-high 29 points.

Tullahoma will look to pick up another win on Jan. 21 when they take on Lawrence County.