Sports
Trimble Advances To District Semi-Finals Game
By: Tee Willis
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The last two meetings between the South Gallia Rebels and the Trimble Tomcats were settled by single digits.
The third game of the series followed the same sequence, but had higher stakes, as the Tomcats — who swept the season series — beat the Rebels 58-55 Wednesday night at Meigs High School.
Despite South Gallia’s tough 2-3 zone defense, the Tomcats’ offense flourished.
Trimble’s combination of off-ball screens in the low-post and fluid ball movement led to easy, and often uncontested, shots for the Tomcats.
The trio of Brayden Weber, Jeremiah Brown and Blake Guffey combined for 46 of the Trimble’s points. Guffey fought in the paint for 13, Brown shot lights-out from the field for 16 points and 10 of Weber’s 17 points came from the free throw line.
While Trimble played sound offense, its lack of defensive intensity kept the Rebels close in the fourth quarter.
Rebels forward Braxton Harvey’s isolation-style game gave the Tomcats problems all night. Harvey totaled 23 points and made three 3-pointers — two of them coming in the last minute of the fourth quarter.
When Harvey wasn’t on, guard Nick Hicks was there to keep the Rebels in the game.
South Gallia played a lot of penetrate-and-kick offense, driving to the lane and kicking it back out to a wide open Hicks. The guard made nine 3-pointers and finished with 19 points.
With little time left on the clock, the Rebels’ only option was to foul the Tomcats and extend the game.
Trimble kept its composure and went on to make 11 of its 14 free throws in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter.
The Tomcats advance to the District Semi-Finals and will play the Peebles Indians on March 3 at 3:45 p.m. in the Convocation Center.