Dragon Tale

Great run by the Panthers in the post season capped by region championship. Hill's injury was devastating on their chances to advance to state. Congrats to coach Ogan on a good coaching career, he will be missed prowling on the sidelines for the Panthers. I saw him play for Powell, when I was a youngster growing up. He seemed to be a mountain of a man to me watching him play. Coach Ogan I believe had his most success at Powell over the past 10 years. 1 state tourney team and a few substates over this time. I recall one of his teams led by Iasac Conner appeared in the substate in the early 2000's...can't recall if they advanced to the state or not. I think this was his first team to advance past the region. Don't recall his 90's team doing all that much. District dominated by Clinton and Oak Ridge mostly from mid 90's to mid 2000's.

It's been awhile...over 30 plus years I hear and maybe it has never happened. I go back to the old District 7 days of Clinton, Oak Ridge, Lenoir City, Lafollete, Kingston and seems like Farragut and the great Arthur "Pete" Billingsley.

Coach Ogan lives! Powell vs Halls should be a battle. OR vs Karns will be a fight!

Heritage rolls over Anderson Co. in first round play. Up 23-7 at the half Lady Mountaineers win handily.

Oh ok , I was feeling disappointed in ya. Good luck against Sevier Co., I probably would go if they still had the player that got dismissed. Might head north to Wartburg to check out Fountain.

Throwing in the towel already SS ... no confidence in your Cats. Any team can be beat , when you get to the State. C'mon mannnnn!!!!!!!!!!

Don't count out Oak Ridge. I haven't seen Blackmon or Southwind , but would like to think they can hang with those schools.

Can Cloudland hang with Wartburg in the Dawg house?

I know what you're saying CC , I would be surprised to see Powell knock off OR for the third time this season. They have their number somehow , but the Panthers do play good team ball and they don't get rattled. What's the scoop on Bearden and Maryville? Dragons will have to meet one of these teams in the 1st round of the region. They seem to be about equal from what I have heard. Whom should the Dragons rather face? Clinton playing with house money so they probably don't have any preference , but may be wrong on that. What y'all say?

Guessing Clinton has beat Oak Ridge more than any team in basketball. Comparable to the Vols record against Kentucky in hoops haha

Dragons get bigtime win over Karns and sends shockwaves throughout the region! Clinton is playing hard and determined. It will be a great day of b ball action for girls and boys tomorrow at CC. Capped by backyard rivalries - Clinton vs OR and Halls vs Powell. Can you say packed house?!

Sibley hit a couple shots late to keep Karns in front. He is def D1 only a Jr , but needs to get stronger. Glad Henson kept him on the pine in the 2nd qtr.

Nice picking Corbus..not too late to go pick up a lottery ticket haha. Yeah Powell is not flashy , but a solid gritty team. They have been underrated all year and IMO well coached by Coach O. Powell is a team that will flat out beat you if you overlook them. I haven't seen Maryville this year , but I know they are well coached too. Should be a classic game with two teams playing well right now.

WOW! What a game tonight at Powell High School. Panthers Fields threw in a desperation 3-point buzzer beating bomb from well past half court to eliminate the Admirals 58-55. Farragut sharpshooter Blake Williams hit two 3's in the last 20 seconds to cap a frantic Admiral rally to tie before Fields heroics. Powell led 51-44 with under a minute to play. It was a terrific ending to an outstanding game. Congratulations to Powell.

I think Bearden is a lock to win over Oak Ridge. I give Central the edge over Catholic. Haven't seen the Irish play...hear they are big. Speed kills and Bobcats have plenty of that. The other 2 games are toss-ups , I feel. Both Lenoir City and Clinton will be tough to beat on their hardwood though. Hood will not let the masses down against AC. Which West team will show up ? The one that beat Fulton twice and Bearden or the one that finished fourth in the tournament ? Clinton has played outstanding the past two games in winning the District championship. This should be a barn burner in the Donnie Dome. I'm pickin the Dragons , who may be peaking at the right time.

Thought this was a 50-50 game coming in. With B Dub out 4 Clinton , I gave a slight edge to AC. Congrats to the Dragons on a huge win. I thought Stone was key coming in and he responded with 2 big 3's early for Clinton , as they raced to an early 21-6 lead after one. Total team victory with solid defense and rebounding. Win # 20...back in District finals for the first time since 2004 state tourney squad. Go Dragons ! Bring it home !

Hopefully we will travel well to Rhea Co. I've been there before and they love their football. Hats off to Powell. They seemed more determined to win the game ...fans included. Clinton fans were dead . Our players deserved more than what they got the other night. We have to get behind this team. True Dragon fans will be out this Friday night. This will be a tough game especially on the road. We could be in for a long night in Green&Gold Country if the Defense doesn't show up.If Hazelhurst is indeed out it will be that much tougher. I wish Rhea fans could watch him play..he is special. Clinton is a jr. dominated team and will be better next year. I hear Rhea is a good team with alot of seniors. As for the oppressed post bout AC- they were lucky to escape Clinton this year. If it weren't for cramps to Stone and Hazelhurst we would have won.Cramps is the only thing that stopped Hazelhurst all night. The 9 yr. streak is over for the I-75 all-stars next year and years to come. Once recruiter Kerr leaves it's over in AC land.

Fulton is peaking at the right time. Just ask A-E , who they dismantled in their region championship. Coach Wright of Fulton will have his high -flying Falcons ready to play.

Just some thoughts on TG's boys looking to dodge OR friendzzless. I do agree with ya that the region is wide open. Playing the final 4 @ West HS makes it neutral. I don't particularly care for the new format. The first round games of the region are fun to watch. Now you can't watch them all. Farragut and Halls top 2 teams I've seen.

OR is not all that. Just keep em off the glass and they can be beat. Booher can shoot the rock. He has tremendous range. OR left him open all night. Halls and Karns will be a barnburner. Both play team BB.

The district is solid at the top with OR , Powell and Halls. Karns has played all 3 with close losses to Halls and Powell. Their win over Fulton really suprised me , but I think they caught the Falcons at the right time coming off emotional win over A-E. I believe the district was stronger with Clinton in the mix last year. The Dragons have taken a step back this season with heavy losses to graduation. They are a team that is capable of knocking off teams (Powell) and turning around and losing to anybody (Campbell Co.). Karns comes into the Donnie Dome tonight for a huge game for both squads. This is a probable first round tourney matchup , where homecourt advantage is crucial. This is a must win game for Clinton. OR and Powell should be a dandy in boys and girls. Powell boys like to run , but OR is too quick in the Wildcat Den. Clinton and Oak Ridge have dominated the district the past 10 yrs. However credit Powell with winning the last 2 district tourneys with lower seeds. This year , I like Halls with their experience (5 starters back) to win District 3.

It will be the 9th meeting between the schools in the post-season since 1990. Clinton leads the all-time post-season with Maryville 5-3. Teams have met the last 3 years. Dragons winning the last 2 games. '04 - Clinton 59-58 '05 - Clinton 72-66 Lee Humphrey led Rebels defeated Clinton in '03 1st round. 5 of the previous 8 matchups have occured in region 1st round. Maryville leads 3-2 in 1st round games. This will be the first meeting with Maryville as a #1 seed in the 1st round. Clinton has been a #1 seed vs Maryville four times in the first round. Dragons 2-2 in these games. Wins in '97(state team) '98(undefeated 31-0 until loss to TN High in sub-state). Losses in '90 and '00. In fact Maryville defeated Clinton @ Sevier Co. in the '90 region. Maryville led that year by super guard Rod Cross. Dragons upstart winners of the Dist. tourney that year led by Stan Clay , Troy Thackerson , Herbert "papoose" Booker and Jr. standout Bam Weaver. Ironically roles are reversed this year at Sevier Co. Can the Dragons make history repeat ? Stay tuned.

I don't think will see a 3AAA sweep. All 4 games could go either way. Powell is by no means weak. I hope the Dragons are ready CHSBB fan. I believe they been looking forward to the region for a while.

Both these games are intriguing. Maryville and Farragut are really hot right and peaking at the right time. Oak Ridge bounced back to destroy Clinton in the 2nd half. The Wildcats have the inside - outside game to win the region. I look for them to defeat a young Admiral squad and face Powell with Lee Smith in a rematch of the District semis. Powell is playing well but don't count out William Blount. Clinton on the other hand is struggling right now losers of 4 out of their last 5. The Dragons were in this same boat last year as a # 4 seed. The only difference being that they were at home for the region. If Dye can regain his shooting touch the Dragons have a shot at defeating the Rebels and advancing.

I believe OR will beat Powell and Clinton will take down Halls. Clinton vs OakRidge in Dist. finals . First final since 2000 after 4 straight finals (97-00). It won't be easy for either after sweeping reg. season play. Best chance for upset is Halls over Clinton. Clinton has a long winning streak over Halls and C. Sharp is dangerous and good. Dye has struggled from the field last 3 games. Dixon has been on fire and is carrying the Dragons. If Dye and Dixon both are on it's all over. Powell has been up and down and will stay on their rollercoaster. Hargis was the reason they beat West but will be neutralized by Stephens and company. Pack the rafters and get ready for another Wildcat/Dragon showdown!