WVMS boys 3rd in state
West Valley Middle School finished third in TMSAA boys basketball AAA state tournament in Murfreesboro last weekend. The Wolves, completing an outstanding season with a 32-2 record, lost to Blackman 61-49 in the semifinals Friday, Feb. 9, but bounced back to defeat Mt. Juliet 60-46 in the consolation game Saturday, Feb. 10.
The story below details how WVMS made it to state.
CLINTON — A stifling defense helped the West Valley Middle School boys basketball team punch its ticket to the 2024 TMSAA Class AAA State Tournament.
The Wolves earned their spot at state with a 40-30 victory over John Sevier in the state sectionals before a spirited crowd in Clinton Middle School’s Joe Hollingsworth Jr. Gymnasium.
The Wolves and Warriors (20-4) were locked in a 10-10 tie at the end of the first quarter.
But in the second stanza, West Valley stepped up the defensive pressure and held John Sevier off the scoreboard. The Warriors scored just 20 points over the final 18 minutes, manufacturing most of their offense after the game’s outcome was already determined.
“It was all about defense,” WVMS head coach Noel Landrum said. “When this group was on (junior varsity) and in the seventh grade, they scored and they scored a lot, and they made a lot of threes. But this year, they realized that they were going to have to play defense, and these boys don’t want to lose.”
Porter Dickinson, Tournament Most Valuable Player, had a game-high 19 points for West Valley. Teammates Cullen Heck added eight and Jacob Griffin had five.
Seaton Moffett scored four points, all in clutch situations in the second half. Avery Davis nailed a big shot in the fourth quarter.
Schuyler Huck, also an All-Tournament honoree from WVMS, made a free throw down the stretch.
