The Tullahoma Lady Wildcats basketball team left no doubt that it deserved to be in the TSSAA Girls State Basketball Tournament with a 75-28 demolition of visiting Portland on Saturday in the sectional round, sending the Lady Cats to Murfreesboro for the first time since 1977.
Tullahoma (22-10) will face Alcoa (27-7) on Wednesday at 5:30 pm at Murphy Center. The winner will face either Dyersburg (25-6) or Daniel Boone (32-3) on Friday at 12:45 pm. All state tournament games will be broadcast on 93.9 The Duck.
Portland (23-11) advanced to the state tournament last year, but had no answer for Tullahoma’s onslaught Saturday night at the Cat Palace. After trailing early 3-2, the Lady Cats built a 20-13 first-quarter lead thanks to three-pointers from Kenzie Farrell, Aubrey North, and Mclayne Bobo.
The Lady Panther kept it close thanks to eight first-quarter points by Ke’Ava Bradley.
However, with 6:08 remaining in the first half and Tullahoma leading 23-13, Bradley was helped off the floor with an ankle injury. She did not return, leaving Portland with nowhere to turn for offense. The Lady Cats cranked up the defensive pressure and overwhelmed the visitors, building a 46-15 halftime lead.
The Lady Cats coasted from there, keeping the pressure on and gradually building the lead to 50 points and activating the Mercy Rule to start the fourth quarter. Tullahoma shot 49% from the field, while Portland shot 24%. The Lady Cats won the rebounding battle 41-25 and forced Portland into 25 turnovers.
Sophomore Lizzy Sharpton earned the Midtown Nutrition Player of the Game, scoring 16 points with four rebounds, three assists, and four steals. Sharpton also earned Most Valuable Player in the Region 6-3A Tournament.
Bobo scored 23 with four rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Gena Hickerson scored 12 points with three rebounds, Madison McCarl had a season-high 12 rebounds along with eight points and four assists, and Aubrey North hit three 3-pointers and had nine points. Kenzie Farrell scored five with six rebounds and a season-high eight assists. Zoe Roberts scored two.
This is the Tullahoma girls’ fifth state tournament appearance in 104 years of basketball. The first came in 1926, with the “Wildkittens” falling 20-7 to Smyrna. It took almost 50 years to make it again, with Tullahoma losing to Shelbyville in 1974. The program earned its only tournament win in 1975, beating Memphis Frayser before falling to Bradley Central. The last trip in 1977 ended with another loss to Bradley Central.
Additional teams in the state tournament are Cocke County (33-4), Liberty Creek (30-4), White County (32-5), and Covington (26-5). The championship game is scheduled for Saturday at 1:30pm.
