The DeKalb County Tigers will meet the Tullahoma Wildcats in the first round of the Region 4 AAA basketball tournament Saturday night, March 1 at Tullahoma. The game tips off at 7 p.m. and WJLE will have LIVE coverage with the Voice of the Tigers John Pryor.
The Tigers are 10-21 overall while the Wildcats are 26-4. It’s the first region tournament appearance for the Tigers since 2013. DC finished 4th in the district tournament. Tullahoma is the top seed from its district entering the region tournament.
After finishing the regular district season at 1-9 the Tigers upended White County in the 1st round of the district tournament and lost close but winnable games against Stone Memorial and Livingston Academy.
Tiger Coach Joey Agee said his team may be playing its best basketball now.
“We are pleased with the way they played in the district tournament. The game against Stone Memorial ended up being 10 points (57-47 final) but it was really a five- or six-point game. We had to start fouling at the end. If we had made a few baskets here or there we might have been in the championship game. In the game with Livingston Academy, we had three opportunities near the end but the shots just didn’t go down although they battled back. We were down by eight points with two minutes to go but we got after them on defense and they (Wildcats) missed some free throws which was good for us. I think we hit three 3-point shots in three possessions in a row which got us back in the game. We tied it up but ended up getting beat by two (51-49). Our effort was great and our defense was pretty good. If we are patient on offense we are a lot better offensively. Sometimes we get a little dribble happy or a little crazy with the ball and turn it over but that has been much better lately and I think you can see the results of that,” said Coach Agee.
Speaking with John Pryor on Tiger Talk, Coach Agee sizes up DeKalb County’s next opponent in Tullahoma.
“Nobody is really picking us to win against Tullahoma so we are basically in the same situation going into the region as we were the district tournament. We have to prove people wrong. When you play in our district you are playing in a lot of tough atmospheres especially White County, Upperman, and Livingston Academy. All those places are pretty rowdy. It shouldn’t be any different at Tullahoma. Of course, it will be a home game for them (Tullahoma) but we have been in that situation before. One of their players, Xavier Ferrell handles the ball well, shoots the mid-range well, and shoots the three point well from what we have seen. He’s the guy who really controls everything for them but they have some other good players too. They have a big 6-foot, 8-inch kid on the inside who creates a lot of problems offensively and defensively. He is back there protecting the rim. We have to move the ball and be patient on offense. Its going to take all of us to win,” said Coach Agee.
Listen for Tiger Talk Saturday, March 1 starting at 6:45 p.m. featuring John Pryor interviewing Tiger Coach Joey Agee and Tiger players and All-District Tournament team members Dallas Kirby and Jon Hendrix followed by the game at 7 p.m. on WJLE AM 1480/ FM 101.7 and on the LIVE stream at www.wjle.com.