First Friday Sees District Seeding On the Line

With two Fridays to go in the regular season, basketball teams across the Upper Cumberland look to gain ground Friday night.

On the girls side, Livingston Academy battles Stone Memorial. The Lady Wildcats defeated Upperman Tuesday night. Livingston remains two games back of Cumberland, whom they lost to last week. The Lady Wildcats will need to win out to move up before tournament play begins. With a win, the Lady Panthers would move to within a game of Livingston for fourth place.

Clay County welcomes Gordonsville. Clay County looks to avenge their double overtime loss to Gordonsville several weeks ago while maintaining the tie for second place. Gordonsville enters tonight having lost four of their last five ever since defeating Clay County in double overtime in January. Second place could be on the line tonight as Gordonsville enters a half game behind Clarkrange and Clay County.

York squares off with Jackson County. The Dragonettes play five times in eight days due to postponements earlier in January. They look to maintain their top seed as they battle Jackson County. The Lady Devils enter 2-4 in the district, a game and a half behind Watertown for third place.

Cookeville travels to face Lebanon. The first matchup between the two teams saw Cookeville win a close game in January by a score of 53-45. The stakes higher Friday, as both teams are tied with Stewart’s Creek at 6-1 for first place in the district. With the district comprised of six teams, the first two get byes in the tournament. A loss could see either Cookeville or Lebanon fall to third.

Pickett faces Clarkrange. The Bobcats look to continue their eight game win streak and remain undefeated in their district at 6-0. Clarkrange looks to turn things around on their senior night after losing three of their last four, including a loss Tuesday night at home to Clay County.

Cumberland County heads to Sparta to face White County. The Lady Jets fly in at 5-2 in the district and will need to beat an undefeated White County team on the road to have any chance of a one seed. White County looks to start a new win streak after defeating Stone Memorial last Tuesday night and will clinch the one seed in tournament play with a win.

DeKalb faces Upperman. DeKalb looks to begin their two game road trip with their first win in district play. Upperman looks to bounce back themselves after losing on the road to Livingston Tuesday night.

Monterey welcomes Watertown. Monterey looks to avoid dropping their 20th game of the season. To do so, Monterey will need to defeat a Watertown team that has won six of their last seven games and held Monterey to 19 points in their first matchup.

Van Buren travels to face Bledsoe County. Van Buren will conclude their three game home stand tonight having already clinched the one seed in the district. Bledsoe County will play their final road non-district game of the season tonight.

Warren looks to dethrone Coffee County. The Lady Pioneers stand at fourth place in their district standings and are tasked with defeating a Coffee County team that has yet to lose this season. Coffee County boasts a 25-0 record.

In Boys Action, Pickett and Clarkrange clash Friday night. Pickett travels after increasing their win streak to nine Tuesday night, beating Red Boiling Springs. They stand undefeated in the district with a 5-0 record. Clarkrange enters their arena having won six of their last nine games but stand in fourth place in the district at 3-4. The Buffaloes rumble one game behind Clay County for third place, and will need a win and Clay County loss to tie them in both teams’ final district game of the season.

Clay travels to face Gordonsville. The Bulldogs look for a three game win streak tonight a half game behind Gordonsville for second place in district play. They will need to win tonight and have Gordonsville lose to Pickett County Tuesday night if the Bulldogs want to hold on to the number two seed and a possible first round bye.

Livingston squares off with Stone Memorial. Livingston lost Tuesday night at home to Upperman and will travel for the final time this regular season. Stone Memorial looks to win the season series against Livingston after defeating them last month. The winner of this matchup will stand second place in their district with only two games remaining, and a bye could await the winner of this pivotal matchup.

York battles Jackson County. York looks for their third win this season and in the district. They lost to non-district opponent Gatlinburg-Pittman Tuesday night. Jackson County heads home after increasing their win streak to ten Tuesday night against Gordonsville. They look for their 20th win this season on senior night.

Warren faces Coffee County. The Pioneers saw their 13 game win streak snapped at the hands of Shelbyville Tuesday night by two points, losing 57-55. Coffee County greets them having lost their last game against Columbia, but has won three of their five games.

The Cumberland County Jets visit White County Warriors. White County will continue their three game home stand tonight after starting it with a win Tuesday night against Stone. Cumberland County stands 7-18 on the season and 2-5 in district play; a win ties White County for fourth place and clinches the season series.

DeKalb and Upperman meete. DeKalb looks to continue to avoid finishing last place in the district after defeating Cumberland Tuesday night. They will look to disrupt the Upperman offense, who scored 66 points in the win over Livingston Tuesday night.

Cookeville squares off against Lebanon. The Cavaliers seek to turn their district record around after losing their last two games. They await movement from Stewart’s Creek, who stands two games ahead of Cookeville for second place. Lebanon enters play 1-6 in the district, defeating Smyrna Tuesday to break their seven game losing streak.

Monterey seeks to avoid its fifth consecutive loss and avoid last place in the district. Watertown enters having dropped seven straight games and stand half a game ahead of Monterey with two games remaining for both teams.

Van Buren battles Bledsoe County. The Eagles look for their 15th win of the season after losing Tuesday night to Grundy County.