The Gilmer Bobcats sent the Panthers back to Ridgeland with a region basketball loss.
GHS and Ridgeland (8-12) continued region action last Tuesday, and the Bobcats had to overcome a slow start. They stalked the Panthers over the final three quarters and pounced in the waning minutes for a 69-63 win.
Gilmer was without two starters Friday at region-leading Calhoun (14-2). The Yellow Jackets took advantage of the shorthanded Cats and won, 84-34.
Gilmer stumbled out of the blocks against Ridgeland, who began the game by scoring 11 unanswered points.
“We are working through some issues of trying to play with some offensive discipline and getting great possessions,” said head coach Sean Glaze. “When we do that, we certainly play harder on the defensive end and are a little bit more dialed in with voices.”
Douglas Callihan’s rebound and putback accounted for Gilmer’s first points four minutes into the game. GHS then went inside to Preston McVey and Keegen Bryant drove to the basket for points. An A.J. Callihan three pointer followed before Mason West stole an inbound pass for an assist to the former.
Gilmer’s 9-2 run cut Ridgeland’s lead to 15-11 at the end of the first. Panther Jamarcus Lewis started to heat up in the second where he scored 11 of his 24 points. The Cats made 11 threes on the night and hit four to keep pace with RHS. Bryant’s three in the final minute before the half trimmed the Panthers’ lead to 33-27 at the break.
All 15 of Bobcat Andrew Chastain’s points were scored in the second half. McVey, West and A.J. Callihan also contributed points in the third, and GHS led by six for much of the quarter. Gilmer was able to tie the score at 51-all, and three RHS free throws over the final 1:28 gave RHS a 54-51 edge entering the fourth.
After making 10/15 shots in the third, GHS was 6/11 from the field in the fourth. Chastain knocked down two three pointers, and not much separated the teams over a seven-minute span. A Chastain turnaround jumper made the score 66-63 in Gilmer’s favor with 1:05 to play. Bryant hit a free throw before a Lewis charge ended an RHS possession.
West made two more from the line to solidify Gilmer’s win.
“In the first half, I didn’t think that we played nearly as well as we had been practicing the couple of days before,” Glaze said. “To their credit, the guys absolutely fought and continued to give good effort, and we made some shots down the stretch and were able to pull out a big region win.”
A.J. Callihan scored 16 to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. West contributed 15 points and five rebounds, and McVey finished with 10 points and seven boards.
GHS was hit by the injury and illness bug between games and took the court without McVey and Jaden Sevcech. The Yellow Jackets proved to be too much for the Cats and led throughout.
“Calhoun, who is certainly the most talented team in the region, was just not a good matchup for us,” Glaze said. “That was one where, with a lot of things stacked against us, we didn’t show up and play our best. And so you turn the page and hopefully we show up Tuesday.”
Gilmer made seven threes but only five two-point shots. Calhoun’s shooting percentage of 55 more than doubled the Cats’. GHS was also heavily outrebounded (45-19), and Calhoun cashed in 52 points in the paint.
The Cats did not score more than seven points in any of the first three quarters and trailed 26-3 after eight minutes. CHS pushed its lead to 56-10 at the half and 74-16 with a quarter to play.
Bryant scored 10 points, Noah Rice added nine and A.J. Callihan scored six.
GHS is 7-13 overall, 3-5 in region and faced LaFayette (13-6) at press deadline.
“We’ve got a big game against LaFayette at home and are hoping our guys are excited for the opportunity to continue to climb the region standings in preparation for the tournament,” Glaze said.
Gilmer hosts nonregion opponent Murray County (17-2) Friday at 8:30 p.m.