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So, too, should McKenzie.

The visiting Lady Bulldogs, however, pressed their way to a 54-43 victory over McKenzie Tuesday night, Jan. 21. Defense did the trick. Gleason's patented pressure kept McKenzie from scoring from the floor for nearly 14 minutes of the game.

When Becky Toombs scored with :34 to play in the first quarter to give MHS a slim 16-15 lead, it was the last time it marked from the field until the 2:50 mark of the third quarter.

In the meantime, Gleason outpaced McKenzie 20-9 to take a 35-25 lead.

"I think we did a better job guarding them after first quarter," said Gleason coach Randy Frazier. "We picked up the pressure a little bit and tried to keep them from moving the ball. I was pleased with the way we played defensively."

The Lady Rebs did a tremendous job attacking the rack in the first quarter, but had difficulty after that. As proficient as McKenzie was on offense in the first frame, it was equally suspect for the next three.

"We're not a real consistent scoring team," said McKenzie coach Dan Ridley. "But Gleason's defense had a little to do with that, too."

Still, defense kept the Lady Rebs close.

"Our defense keeps us around," Ridley said. "Gleason shot real well. Randy (Frazier) told me that this was probably the best his team has played all year."

McKenzie misplaced Amy Suddath a few times and she made the Lady Rebs pay. The Gleason shooter was 3-4 from the three-point line and filled it up for 17 points. Guard Haley Hudson had a good night with 12 points.

"We had some balance tonight and that was good," Frazier said. "This was about as good as we've looked this year."

Suddath, Haley Hudson and Kayla Hudson caught fire in the third with seven unanswered points. Gleason took a 10-point 35-25 advantage and began to slowly pull away from McKenzie.

Sarah Hartz scored with 2:50 to play in the third, breaking a field goal drought of 13:36 and enabling the Lady Rebs to pull within eight. Renee Crawley's shot with :27 to play edged MHS within seven, 36-29, but Suddath spotted up from the rainbow and flushed a triple with :03 for a 39-29 Gleason lead.

McKenzie never fully recovered.

"I'm happy with the way the girls played," said Ridley. "They did everything we asked them to. I think we handled the press pretty well."

McKenzie only committed 10 turnovers, same as Gleason, so it was pretty clean game.

Both teams enjoyed production up and down the lineup.

"We got some good play out of our bench and we have some players stepping up now and that's good," said Ridley. "We needed that. Some of our younger players really stepped up."

McMackins led MHS with 17 points. Toombs scored eight and Kristen Wiggins added six. Hartz and Hope Wyder each had four while Crawley added two. Ashley Wilson had seven.

"We attacked the basket better in the second half and our rebounding was respectable,"said Frazier. "I think we played well."

GLEASON 54
Suddath 6-9 3-4 17, H. Hudson 3-5 6-8 12, Wilson 2-3 0-0 7, Spain 1-2 2-2 4, Price 2-4 0-0 4, Wiseman 1-3 2-2 4, Felts 0-2 3-4 3, K. Hudson 1-3 0-0 3. TOTALS 17-32 15-19 54.

McKENZIE 43 McMackins 6-9 3-3 17, Toombs 2-4 4-4 8, Wiggins 3-6 0-0 6, Hartz 1-3 2-2 4, Wyder 2-4 0-0 4, Crawley 1-4 0-0 2. TOTALS 15-31 11-13 43.

First quarter - McKenzie 16, Gleason 16; Second quarter - Gleason 26, McKenzie 21; Third quarter - Gleason 39, McKenzie 29. 3-point field goals - Gleason 5-9 (Suddath 3-4, Wiseman 1-1, K. Hudson 1-2, H. Hudson 0-2); McKenzie 2-6 (McMackins 2-4, Smith 0-1, Wyder 0-1). Rebounds - Gleason 16 (Wiseman 3, Suddath 3, K. Hudson 3); McKenzie 11 (Toombs 4). Fouled out - none. Technical fouls - none. Turnovers - Gleason 10; McKenzie 10.
 

The Rebels hadn't played in a week and had its Saturday night game with West Carroll postponed because of snow.

"To be honest, our practice yesterday (Monday) was awful," Smith said. "I didn't know what we were going to have."

In theater, there's an expression: Bad rehearsal, good performance. In McKenzie's case, it must be true.

The Rebels put the clamps on Gleason in the first half and held off the irksome Bulldogs for a 56-38 victory.

"I was concerned about not playing," said Smith. "We really needed to play Saturday night just so we could be playing."

Rebel sophomore John French appeared to be right on stride. He had the game of his career, scoring 29 points.

"John had a great game tonight," Smith said. "He really stepped up."

The Rebels led 9-6 after one and began to turn on the afterburners late in the second half. French's perimeter prowess was aided by senior Ryan Drewry and David Duncan inside. In the final three minutes of the first half, McKenzie outscored Gleason 9-2 and led 25-11 at the break.

The Rebels started a free-for-fall as the third quarter began. French, Huffman and Randy Lacey staked the Rebels to a formidable 44-20 lead.

"Then I substituted five for five and Gleason goes on an 11-0 run," said Smith, somewhat second-guessing himself.

Gleason began lobbing three balls up and sinking them. Brian Taylor, Ryan Mathis and Adam Bennett connected on three straight triples. Mathis accented the run with a pair of free throws with :06 to play in the third. What was once a 24-point lead had melted down to a 13-point advantage.

"We had two or three eighth graders out there during that run," said Gleason coach Pete Angelos. "We didn't play hard in the first half and Larry Joe's team was ready to play. I was proud of the kids in the second half."

The Rebels soaked up the run and managed to keep Gleason at arm's length.

"We came out well early in the third quarter," said Smith. "We ran the floor well and I think we might have gotten a little tired down the stretch."

Smith also praised the defensive effort.

"I thought our defense played well," said Smith. "That was the key to the first half. They had some good looks that didn't fall, but overall, I was pleased with how we played defensively."

Gleason was a paltry 5-16 from the floor in the first half while McKenzie was 10-18 in the first 16 minutes.

"We gave a great effort and made things respectable," said Angelos. "I was proud of our second-half effort."

G 6 5 20 7 38
M 9 16 19 12 56

GLEASON 38
Lucas Carey 19, Ryan Mathis 8, Bennett 6, Cooper 3, Taylor 3, Bailey 2, Adam Mathis 2.
McKENZIE 56
John French 29, Daniel Duncan 14, Drewry 6, Anderson 2, Lacey 2, Ghyers 2.

McKenzie lineman Ricky Mathis and Hollow Rock-Bruceton standout Patrick Willis each earned invitations to play in the prestigious Tennessee-Kentucky All Star Game.

Lexington, Ky. will be the site of the game, which will be played sometime in June.

"This is a big deal," said McKenzie coach Wade Comer. "The field was narrowed down to 40 players from Class A to 5A and the private schools, so there were a lot of good players who didn't make it."

Mathis, the first Rebel to be invited to the Tennessee-Kentucky game, was McKenzie's first Mr. Football finalist while Willis was a finalist for both Mr. Football lineman and back, a first in the history of Tennessee. He won the lineman award.

Mathis committed to Tennessee-Chattanooga on Monday while Willis has already verbally committed to Mississippi. The national signing date is Feb. 5 and verbal commitments are non-binding.
"Ricky took a visit to Chattanooga a few weeks ago and liked it," said Comer. "He'll be playing in a good conference against teams like Furman and Georgia Southern. And Steve Sloan is the athletic director there."

Sloan, a former Alabama standout, was head coach at Vanderbilt, Ole Miss and Duke before becoming AD at Alabama from 1987-89.
Willis will join David Cutcliffe's Rebel program, a team that defeated Nebraska in the Independence Bowl this past year.

The Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association made the Tennessee All Star selections. The All-Star game alternates between Knoxville and Lexington each year.

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