GRAY DEYOSports Writer

The Tullahoma girls’ basketball team from Dec. 19-20 played in the Indy Hoop Fest, a basketball event in Thompson Station. They played in two games, losing one and winning one. They won against Franklin High School 57-33 and lost against CPA by a score of 45-37.

Franklin

Despite the opposing Lady Rebels’ record of 1-6 going into the day one matchup against Tullahoma, they were a more than dangerous opponent. One of the main reasons for that is, the talent of their star senior center, Cecilie Brandimore. The fourth-year Lady Rebel has been one of the better centers in the state the past couple of seasons. Her versatile game earned her many college offers, one of which is the school she is committed to: the University of Missouri. It was clear from the start of this game that Franklin was looking to get her involved, and Tullahoma was ready for it.

Although Tullahoma was undersized in guarding the 6’3” Brandimore, they did a great job of shielding her off from getting to her scoring spots in the paint. One player who did an especially good job of this was sophomore Madison McCarl. The second year, Lady Wildcat, along with limiting Brandimore offensively, helped in the rebounding department and some in scoring. McCarl had five rebounds in the game, two of which were offensive, and also tallied five points. One of her two field goals in the game was a jump shot beyond the perimeter over the outstretched arms of Brandimore.

In the second quarter, Tullahoma ultimately separated themselves and got this win. Going into the second, they had a five-point lead at 15-10. Come the sound of the buzzer for the first half, Tullahoma had a 32-18 lead. Helping in creating this separation offensively and maintaining it throughout the game were senior McLayne Bobo and sophomore Lizzy Sharpton. The two combined for 41 of Tullahoma’s 57 points–Sharpton had 19, and Bobo had 22.

Bobo had another game of promising sharpshooting, going two of five from behind the line. Sharpton, along with her high-scoring game, was great on the glass, securing a team-high 11 rebounds.

CPA

This game against CPA does, unfortunately, go marked down as an “L” on the Lady Wildcats’ schedule, but this should really be a game they collectively take as a positive. Tullahoma’s defense, which has been one of their strengths this season, showed up in a big way against the opposing Lady Lions, who have an undefeated record of 10-0 on the year. The 45 points they held them to was the lowest total CPA has been held to, by any team all season. This includes a team that the Lady Lions played in the Hoop Fest, who are also seen as one of the better teams in the state, Bearden. They have one of the top players in the TN, Natalya Hodge, and she and the rest of Bearden lost in day one of the Indy Hoop Fest to CPA by a score of 69-61.

In this game for Tullahoma, the main contributors for the Lady Wildcats offensively once again were Sharpton and Bobo. They combined for 27 points–Bobo with 13 and Sharpton with 14.