The top seed Tug Valley Panthers never trailed as they flexed their muscle to defeat the 8th seed Montcalm Generals, 67-36, on Thursday in the Class A quarterfinals at the Charleston Civic Center.
The Panthers (23-2) came out of the gate quickly and built a 17-10 lead after the first quarter. They then extended the advantage to 35-17 at the intermission.
Any hopes of a Montcalm (17-7) comeback were dashed when the Panthers came out of the locker room clicking on all cylinders to take a 53-21 lead into the final quarter. They were able to cruise from there.
“I thought handled the first game here well,” said Tug Valley head coach Garland “Rabbit” Thompson. “We may not have shot the ball really well, but defense carries the day. Defense is our calling card.”
The Panthers were able to force 28 Montcalm turnover, with 17 of them coming on steals.
Braydun Ferris led Tug Valley with 26 points and 7 assists. Ethan Ferrell followed with 12 points. Bryson Elia had 11 points and 4 blocks. Braxton Farley had 6 points. Ashton Davis netted 5 points. Carson Newsome and Cameron Slone finished with 2 points each.
Donovan Reed paced Montcalm with 15 points and 8 rebounds in the loss.
Tug Valley will next play in the Class A semifinals against the winner of Huntington St Joe and Greater Beckley Christian on Friday at 5:30 pm.
