Tyler Whitman scored 22 points in front of a packed house on Senior Night as Ooltewah outscored McMinn County by 23-9 in the third quarter en route to a 68-59 district win Monday.

McMinn County came out of the gate with a sense of urgency. The Cherokees jumped out to a 6-2 advantage to start the game. Ooltewah responded with a 4-2 run to trail by just two. Cy Ables hit a jumper to extend the lead to four with 1:20 left in the first quarter. Ooltewah trailed by as much as six points late in the quarter, but answered with a 5-0 run to end the quarter to make it 12-11 in favor of the Cherokees after one quarter.

The Owls took their first lead of the game when Jervon Johnson dialed long distance on the first offensive possession of the second quarter to give Ooltewah a two-point advantage. Later in the quarter, Josh Lloyd nailed a trey to make it 19-12. Austin Ramsey ended the Owls' eight point run, and answered with four straight points to make it 19-16 in favor of the Owls. On the next play, Johnson hit a jumper to extend the lead to five.

Austin Ramsey answered for the Cherokees, scoring five straight points to tie the game at 21 apiece. Both teams traded baskets for the next two possessions, making it 25 all. With little time left before halftime, Eric Wilcox hit a jumper to give the Cherokees a two-point lead. Ooltewah attempted a shot as the buzzer sounded, but missed. Ramsey scored 11 of his teams' 15-second quarter points, helping to give the Cherokees a 27-25 halftime lead.

On Ooltewah's first possession of the second half, Decorius Hixson scored on a layup to tie the game at 27. Later in the quarter, Tyler Whitman hit back-to-back jumpers to put the Owls up by four. With 4:12 left in the third stanza, Wesley Richey knocked down a jumper to make it 35-29 in favor of Ooltewah. Ables answered with a jumper to trim the lead to four.

The Owls responded with a 6-0 run, taking a 10-point advantage with 2:01 left in third. With a minute left, Johnson dialed long distance and gave the Owls a 46-34 lead. Both teams traded baskets for the rest of the quarter. The Owls outscored the Cherokees 23-9 in the third quarter, resulting in a 48-36 lead after three stanzas

Ooltewah started the fourth quarter on a 4-2 run, making it 52-38 with 6:30 to play. The Owls and Cherokees matched each other score for score for the next couple of minutes, with the Owls holding on to a big 14-point lead. A few plays later, Jay Johnson hit back-to-back layups, cutting the lead to 10 with 4:00 to go. The Owls answered with a 5-0 run to extend the lead to 15 with 3:00 left in the game.

Less than a minute later, McMinn responded with a 4-0 run to make it 58-47. Ramsey hit a layup and a foul shot to trim the lead to nine with 1:13 to play. McMinn County outscored Ooltewah 23-20 in the fourth quarter, but it was the third quarter that hurt the Cherokees.

Johnson racked up 17 points for Ooltewah, while Richey had 11 points.

Ramsey and Ables were the offensive leaders for the Cherokees, scoring 16 points apiece. Jay Johnson finished with 12.

IN GIRLS ACTION

McMinn Girls 42, Ooltewah Girls 29

It was all Cecily Jackson for McMinn County Monday night at Ooltewah. Jackson scored 20 points to help lead the Lady Cherokees past the Lady Owls 42-29.

The Lady Cherokees went on a 5-0 run to start the game. The Lady Owls responded with a 4-2 run and made it 7-4 in favor of the Lady Cherokees. The Lady Cherokees extended their three-point lead to seven with 3:00 left in the first quarter. Ri Lawrence answered by
hitting a jumper to trim the lead to five with 1:53 to go. The Lady Cherokees held the Lady Owls scoreless for the rest of the first quarter, and took a 13-6 advantage into the second stanza.

Ooltewah started the second quarter on a 6-2 run. Michelle Bradley forced back-to-back steals, scoring four points in less than 30 seconds to make it a three-point game with 5:00 left before halftime. The Lady Cherokees responded with a 4-0 run to take a 19-12 lead with 3:29 to go in the second quarter. A few plays later, Jackson hit back-to-back layups extending the lead to nine with 1:33 left in the quarter. The game remained deadlock for the rest of the quarter, as the Lady Cherokees had a 23-14 advantage at the half.

Jackson was a brute force offensively in the first half for the Lady Cherokees, scoring 10 points. Jackson started the second half with the same results, scoring the first six points to give the Lady Cherokees a 15-point lead early in the quarter. Ooltewah answered with an 8-2 run to make it 31-22 in favor of the Lady Cherokees. The Lady Cherokees ended the third quarter on a 6-0 run to take a 37-22 lead into the fourth quarter.

Ooltewah outscored the visitors 3-0 to begin the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 12 points. But, with 3:55 to play, Jessica Hughes connected on a layup to make it 39-25 in favor of McMinn County. The Lady Cherokees extended their lead to 15 with 2:10 left in the game.Ooltewah trimmed the lead to 13, but could do no more as the Lady Cherokees earned a key district win 42-29.

Lawrence led the Lady Owls on offense with nine points. Bradley scored six.