Phil Campbell gets overtime win in season opener
A strong second half propelled the Phil Campbell Bobcats to a come-from-behind 57-50 overtime win against the Tharptown Wildcats Nov. 13.
Isaac Riddle led the way for the Bobcats, scoring six of team’s 11 points in overtime. He was also the Bobcats’ leading scorer in the game with 15 points.
Tharptown led Phil Campbell 16-13 at the end of the first quarter on some strong three-point shooting by Winston Nolen. Nolen drained three three-pointers in the first period of play.
The Wildcats extended their lead over the Bobcats to 29-17 at halftime, including a three-point buzzer beater by Hayden Moss to close out the half.
Phil Campbell turned up the intensity in the third quarter, outscoring Tharptown 14-7 to cut the Wildcats’ lead to 36-31. Ben Williams led the Bobcats in the third quarter with some aggressive play, scoring six points.
Nate Owens and Luke Barnwell combined for 11 points in the fourth quarter to help Phil Campbell tie the score at 46-46 and send the game into overtime.
Following Riddle in the scoring column for the Bobcats were Luke Garrison with 10 points, Williams with eight points, Brett Saint with eight points, Owens with seven points, Barnwell with five points and Ridge Raper with four points.
Colton Simmons led Tharptown with 15 points. He was followed by Nolen with 13 points, Carson Petree with 10 points, Edward Lopez with eight points, Moss with three points and Les Montgomery with one point.
Varsity Girls
Phil Campbell showed no sign of a hangover from last year’s run to the 2A state semifinals. Using trademark pressure defense to create easy shots, Phil Campbell cruised to an easy 71-33 win.
After trailing 3-0 on a quick early basket by Tharptown’s Gracie Montgomery, it was all Bobcat layups and free throws for the rest of the first quarter. The Bobcats outscored the Wildcats 34-6 and went 12-for-15 from the free-throw line in the first quarter. Caitlyn Mills had 12 of her game-high 16 points in the first quarter alone.
Phil Campbell extended the lead to 50-25 at halftime and 69-25 at the end of the third quarter.
Senior Abby Davis led the way for the Bobcats with 21 points. Mills followed Davis with 16 points; Kallie Allen added 12 points; and Olivia Taylor had 10 points. Also scoring for Phil Campbell were Kenner Scott with seven points, Katie Thomas with four points and Kaci Harris with one point.
Montgomery led Tharptown with 15 points. She was followed by Adriana Borden with seven points, Autumn Montgomery and Aly Vandiver with four points each and Brooke Daily with three points.
B-Varsity Boys
In the B-varsity boys game, Phil Campbell easily ran past the Tharptown Wildcats, winning 51-19. Nate Orrick and Mason Swinney led the Bobcats with 12 points and 10 points, respectively.
Luis Valdez led Tharptown with five points.
