BULLDOGS UPEND TIGERS
Published 12:05 am Friday, February 3, 2017
The Andalusia Bulldogs and the Luverne Tigers split on Thursday night in the final regular season home game of the year.
BOYS
ANDALUSIA 66,
LUVERNE 21
Andalusia came pounding out of the gate in the Thursday’s night cap as the Bulldogs cruised to a 66-21 victory over the Luverne Tigers.
“I was really proud of the way that we came and played,” Andalusia head coach Anthony Clark said. “I thought we came out focused tonight, and this time of year you have to be able to play with your mind in the right place. I’m really thankful for these eight seniors that we have on the team. They might not all get a lot of playing time, but they work hard everyday and do everything that you ask them to do.”
The Bulldogs got things rolling with quick buckets from Trey Wilkerson and B.J. Anderson.
Anderson got a dunk early in the first that helped the Bulldogs to a 6-0 lead.
After coming up with a steal, Wilkerson threw down a powerful one-handed slam.
Andalusia was on top 21-2 after one period of play.
The Bulldogs continued to pour on the pressure in the second period with a big 3-pointer from Adam Peek to give Andalusia a 42-9 lead at halftime.
In the third period, Curtis Daniels, Alex Sheridan and Roosevelt Weaver each had big points to help push the Andalusia lead up to 55-16 entering the final frame.
Wilkerson led the Bulldogs with 14 points in the victory.
Anderson finished the night with 10 points and R.J. Drish came in with 8 points.
GIRLS
LUVERNE 52,
ANDALUSIA 51
In the opening varsity match, the Lady Bulldogs held the lead for much of the game, but a buzzer-beating 3-pointer lifted the Lady Tigers to a 52-51 victory in overtime.
Kat Finley helped put the Lady Bulldogs on top 6-0 with a pair of free throws early in the opening period, and then Alex Crittenden knocked down a 3-pointer to put Andalusia up 9-0.
Aaliyah Lawrence then came up with an offensive rebound and put back that had the Lady Bulldogs out front 15-3 at the end of the first period.
Luverne came out strong in the second period with a 12-0 run that allowed the Lady Tigers to tie the game 15-15.
Crittenden got the Lady Bulldogs back on top with a 3-pointer that also helped Andalusia start their own 12-0 run.
At halftime, the Lady Bulldogs were on top 27-17.
Shalisa Thomas came out strong for the Lady Bulldogs in the third period and helped Andalusia to a 36-27 lead heading into the final frame.
Luverne began to inch their way back into the game, and free throw with 2.2 seconds left in the game tied the contest at 46-46 to force overtime.
Andalusia took the lead to start the overtime period and a free throw from Finley gave the Lady Bulldogs a 51-49 lead with less than 15 seconds left on the clock.
The Lady Tigers got the ball on the inbound pass and headed down court looking for a last-second shot.
Andalusia had the play well covered and knocked the ball loose, but a Lady Tiger corralled the ball, took a few steps before firing a prayer from 3-point land.
The ball sailed throw the twine to give the Lady Tigers a 52-51 victory.
Thomas led the Lady Bulldogs with 16 points in the defeat.
“It’s tough to lose on like that,” Lady Bulldog head coach Brad Garner said. “We did everything right on that last possession and knocked the ball away, but it just bounced the wrong way. There were too many things we did to let them back in the game, but if we can look at from a positive perspective, we can learn from this. I was very proud of our effort tonight.”