The WCMS Pioneers played their last home game of their season Friday night against the Gators of North Middle from Winchester.
If Friday night was any indication of what four games in the past week did to warm up the team from the long COVID-19 break, there is a reason to be optimistic for the Pioneers’ chances in their district tournament this week. A 62-33 victory over North was an exclamation point on a bumpy stop-and-go season.
Dyson Elam scored 28 points in one of his best games to date. It was what WCMS head coach Kevin Burnett was looking for to give his team momentum heading into the tournament.
Brody Womack finished off a strong week with 12 points. Andrew Key was hustling all night on both ends of the court and contributed 6. The Pioneers jumped out to a 14-point lead in the second quarter, but the lead at halftime was only 6 points.
North Middle squeezed the lead down to a threepoint lead early in the second half. Dyson Elam exploded at that point in the game.
Elam made free throws after being fouled driving to the hoop, he stole the ball during a full-court press and took it straight to the basket, and he caught a pass in the lane for an easy two. North simply could not match up with Elam, and at times, Elam looked like a middle school hall of fame player. There may not be any middle school hall of fames, but if there was one, Elam’s performance Friday night would be on a video in the hall.
The game was never in doubt after the Pioneers let the lead slip down to three. A new face for the Pioneers, Carter Simpson, got some playing time, and he looked like a rising star for the future Pioneers. Coach Burnett hopes Simpson will be able to help them in the district tournament. There is no dominant team in the district which means Warren County is peaking at the right time.
Leading scorers for the North Middle Gators were Aiden Kelly with 15 points and Xander Pogue with 6.
Coach Burnett commented about the upcoming tournament after the game. “We have been too inconsistent, but I think it is a tossup going into the tournament. We have to make up our minds. There is something out there that you very seldom get a chance at. We have to put our best foot forward. That time off hurt us more than I thought it would. I don’t want to make excuses, and I am not going to. But the facts are that it took some conditioning away from us.”
The district tournament is in Shelbyville at Harris Middle and Shelbyville Central High School on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Please check the Southern Standard Twitter feed @ sstandardnews for updates on scores.
WCMS 62 North Middle 33 Pioneer Scoring Dyson Elam 28, Brody Womack 12, Andrew Key 6, Nate Turner 5, Aaron Templeton 4, Carter Simpson 4, Byson Bouldin 3
