Unicoi County downs West Ridge in Betsy Bash

ELIZABETHTON – Jackson Simmons' heat check came to a screeching halt on Saturday night. The 5-foot-11 senior guard scored 16 of Unicoi County's first 18 points and finished with 35 points during a 61-51 defeat of West Ridge in the semifinals of the Betsy Bash in Treadway Gym. The Blue Devils (9-4) will play in the championship on Monday against Woodberry Forest (Va.), which outlasted stubborn Elizabethton, 77-69, in the semifinal nightcap. Simmons, a senior with more than 2,000 career points, ended his slump by piling up points in the midrange, making three 3-pointers and finishing some contested drives with either hand. His onslaught on Saturday began with a 15-foot pull-up in the opening minute. "It felt good for sure," Simmons said, "because I had a few games I've kind of struggled shooting the ball starting with Volunteer last Monday and then Tuesday at East, and then even yesterday (against Daniel Boone) I wasn't really shooting the ball very well. I think I went two games without hitting a three. Definitely, starting out like that tonight got me some confidence back." Despite a dialed-in Simmons, West Ridge took a 46-43 lead on Grant Thompson's difficult driving scoop with 5:25 remaining. But Simmons answered with a contested 3-pointer off the dribble and freshman AJ Thomas followed with a 25-footer from the left wing off the dribble to give the Devils a lead (49-46) they wouldn't relinquish. "What can you say about Jackson," Unicoi County head coach Brandon Broyles said. "He's a great scorer and a great leader. … AJ's a special talent and a special kid." West Ridge coach John Dyer noted the back-to-back threes being the game's pivotal moment. "We just had a terrible fourth quarter," Dyer said. "We let them make back-to-back threes and that changed the whole game – changed the whole game. Unicoi County Unicoi played really well, really tough." Cade Peterson and Carter Simmons scored 10 and seven points, respectively, for the Blue Devils, who slowed the pace while nursing a five-point lead with just under three minutes remaining. And after chewing up some 45 seconds, Jackson Simmons found Carter Simmons with a diagonal pass for a lay-in that gave Unicoi a 53-46 lead with 2:02 to go. "I got a little nervous and started second-guessing myself a little bit about taking the air out of the ball," Broyles said. "But at the same time, I was like, 'Man, let's not force the issue. They're too good of a basketball team for us to give them more possessions.' … Carter had a good night tonight." Broyles also commended the performances of Aidyn Evely and Peterson. "We've got kids doing their roles and what we need 'em to do for us to be successful," Broyles said. "It's just a great group of kids." Beating Woodberry Forest (7-0) would likely require the best performance of the season. The Tigers have firepower and size, and they share the basketball. "Woodberry is big, very athletic and will present a great challenge for us Monday night," Broyles said. "They play extremely hard, look to push the ball in transition and have a 'big' inside. We'll have to do a great job handling their size and athleticism." Grant Thompson led West Ridge with 19 points. Will Holmes added 12 and Jackson Light finished with 11. Woodberry Forest (Va.) 77, Elizabethton 69 Senior point guard Cade Ellis scored 25 points and the Tigers withstood a furious finish from the Cyclones. An Ellis basket gave Woodberry Forest a 71-56 lead with 1:46 remaining, but Elizabethton answered with a 10-2 run to get within 73-66 on a pair of Hudson Pate free throws with 56.7 seconds to go. Elizabethton got within 75-69 with 23 seconds remaining on the fourth 3-pointer from Justin Whitehead. But Ellis beat the ensuing full-court pressure for a lay-in six seconds later to end any suspense. Sophomore guard Evan Chambers led the Cyclones with 20 points. Whitehead scored 18 and Pate finished with 13. "I thought our kids played as hard as they could," Elizabethton coach Lucas Honeycutt said. "They were just a little outmatched, you know, size wise. I thought they battled and they did everything that we asked them to do. We just didn't have enough tonight prevail, didn't make enough plays." Stiles Harper scored 18 points for the Tigers. George Kalyuzhny had 13. Elizabethton will play West Ridge on Monday.