VB-booster

Clay County definitely had their "A" game last night and VB came out flat. Clay came into the game averging 65 ppg and put 84 on the scoreboard. They had a great plan (offensive and defensive) and executed it very well. Numerous guys hounded Mills , a lot of times two at a time. He still scored 40 plus last night, so I wouldn't call that an off night? The 3 ball just wasn't falling for VB. They probably made fewer last night than any game this year? Clay led by 15 before VB cut it down to 2 points late in the game but Clay kept answering. Hats off to them and it was a heck of a game. As far as Richard Hardy beating Jackson, that shouldn't surprise anyone that has seen RH play. Yes, VB beat them handily all 3 times but VB was playing up to their potential in those games. As mentioned earlier, RH doesn't have any depth and that is their downfall.

The refs were definitely trigger happy in the 1st half against both teams. Glad it wasn't as bad in the 2nd. As far as VB trying to run the score up against Clay in the end, that wasn't the way I seen it. Clay actually had their best scoring quarter in the 4th, which was 22 points versus VB's 19.

Caden Mills from Van Buren County has to be a favorite to win class single A. The 6'6" wing is the real deal. His off the court and classroom demeanor are just as strong as his basketball game.

These are state tournament records and are listed in the back of the program. According to the radio and tv announcers, the other 2 records he was in the running for was most free throws attempted during the tournament ( record is 50 by Whitby, Key had 47) and most free throws made ( record is 41 by Amonette, Key had 37).

No doubt, Key is the best player in class A basketball and hopefully he will continue to strive at the next level. I don't think he broke the 5 records that Shozen has listed? I am just basing this on recorded stats by TSSAA, so they may not be accurate?. Most points in a quarter: 23 by Trey Pearson in 2001 and 23 by Tyreke Key this year. I call that tying, not breaking. Also on the most points in a half, the record is 35 by Mike Rhodes in 1977, Key had 32 this year.

If Clay county plays the rest of the season like they did tonight against VB, they will be a tough out. Key got his points and then the rest of the guys got hot in the 2nd half. Haven't seen GP play, but on paper it looks to be a good game brewing if they meet Clay in the region championships. Hopefully Van Buren will get their injured starter back and be fortunate enough to host the Sub State again. As we have seen before, anything can happen in March.

That would have to be a Saturday night game, lol. 2 hr drive, 106.4 miles from school to school.

12thmangca, I watched the ref asking Arnold about his leggings and watched him pull them up during warm ups. I then noticed that the other players wearing similar ones. I thought maybe because his had blue stripes at top and bottom instead of solid white like the other guys? I wasn't close to the court, so maybe that wasn't the case?

Great win for VB tonight. There was some tough calls against GCA's Arnold but most of those 1st half teams fouls were legitimate holds on defense (In the 2nd half, both teams had 11 fouls). Ledford played extremely well for a Freshman and GCA's press gave us more trouble than it should have. But this was not VB's best game by no means. We can shoot a lot better and score more in the post than we did tonight. Hopefully everything will be clicking for us on Friday when we face BTW.

Congrats to South Greene. Anything less than the state title the next 2 years "could" be considered a let down? Gibson County gave them a run for their money tonight.

In both games, Gibson County trailed by double digits in the 3rd quarter and came back to win by 4 pts. I don't think they should try for the trifecta. South Greene might not let the comeback happen? Should be a good game, can't wait to watch it.

Pioneer42 and westtnsportsman, glad to see that you two were intelligent enough not to believe what some of these "know it alls" were saying about VB. It was a great game full of runs by both teams. It would have been a great game for a spectator to watch. Seems VB ran out of steam towards the end but never gave up. Good luck to Gibson County the rest of the way.

Congrats to Coach Sullivan and the Van Buren boys. Great game tonight between Van Buren county and Jackson county. The gym was maxxed to capacity tonight and the boys played their heart out and left it all on the floor. This proves that those early season losses don't matter in March.

Van Buren and Jackson have met 3 out of the last 5 years. Last year in was VB And Pickett County in the sub state game.

Big shout out to Coach Cheryl Cole and Van Buren county Eaglettes. Last night they punched their ticket to the big dance for the first time in school history. Led by Miss Basketball finalists Lakelyn Bouldin, the Eaglettes beat Jackson county for the first time in years. Congrats to the other 7 teams that made it at was well. See you in Mufreesboro.

Good game in a great atmosphere. The place was packed with people from all over the Upper Cumberland. Yes, VB was missing a starter tonight, probably our best defender? Clay probably would have still won, but I think it would have came down to closing minutes. Not taking anything away from our guy that guarded Key tonight, I think he played him hard. Key is just a step better than anyone else. His defensive presence changed the way our guys played too. VB's missed free throws really hurt our chances of making a comeback late in the game. I bet we missed more tonight than in other game this year and Clay didn't miss many.

"Would have been much closer game if he had played" Why didn't he play last night?

I see VB and MC having 3 if not 4 contested games this year. It wouldn't surprise me if they split in regular season. Or if one team sweeps the regular season, the other team could win the district tournament. As for as Clay County goes, they had their way with us up there, but I expect a lot closer game when we play them here. They did the same thing to us last season there but we lost by 5 here.

Congrats to Van Buren for making it this far. Also congrats to Loretto on the win. They looked pretty good today. Their size definitely gave us trouble. Good luck tomorrow against UC.

Bob77, I hope you were just trying to stir the pot with that post? Clay county has had their share of good teams over the years, but this year wasn't one of them. Monterey (3 wins going in) put them out of the district tournament. Tnbball15's prediction of VB finishing 3rd or 4th in District 7a is probably accurate but they deserved more credit than what you give them.

RedTang, Van Buren's team doesn't have the size or age of Loretto. Only 1 senior on the team and no major height to speak of. Van Buren boys have been the underdog all year and it hasn't seemed to bother them. Hopefully it will be a good game. Maybe VB will catch Loretto looking ahead to the semi-final game and pull the upset?

That's mean darkside!!! The blind draw couldn't happen in the girls because it normally occurs the Sunday before the tournament and the girls didn't finish until Monday. Guess since the girls couldn't have a blind draw, the boys didn't get one either. Fair is fair.

Truly amazing for Van Buren. Less than 6 weeks ago, they had a 9-14 record. They didn't get down or give up. Now they have won 9 out of the last 10 games. Coming together at the right time!!!! Congrats to all the guys and Coach Sullivan.

Pickett County played great tonight. They could have scored as many as they wanted. If they shoot and play pressure defense like that against Middleton, they could come out with the victory. Coach Smith has them playing pretty good. Bouldin had 24 pts in roughly 2 1/2 quarters and was only playing at half strength. Bad timing on her illness.

Hey GPSportsfan, will Goodpasture bring a big crowd with them? It's a long way from Madison to Spencer.