Senators stay unbeaten with road sweep
The Norris Middle School boys basketball team kept its perfect start alive with a pair of road wins last week in North Knox County.
The Senators (3-0) capped the week with a nail-biting 27-26 victory Thursday night at Powell Middle School, handing the Panthers (4-1) their first loss of the season.
Earlier in the week, Norris defeated Gresham 45-37 on Monday.
Thursday’s game stayed close throughout as both defenses kept scoring in check.
Norris’ Eli Lindsay delivered the game-winner late in the fourth quarter, grabbing an offensive rebound and putting it back to give the Senators a 27-25 lead.
Powell’s Dennis Frazier, who finished with nine points, had a chance to tie it with 2.8 seconds remaining. He missed the first of two free throws but hit the second to make it 27-26. The Panthers got one last chance after forcing a turnover, but the Senators’ defense held firm to preserve the win.
“That game could’ve gone either way,” first-year Norris Coach Trey Bingham said. “We rebounded well, and some guys stepped up who hadn’t been doing that. We’ve got players who have never played basketball before, and they really did a good job. This is a tough place to play.”
Cooper Downs led Norris with 10 points, including two clutch 3-pointers. Lindsay added six points, and Hunter Wade chipped in five.
Powell Coach Tyler Howell credited his young team’s effort despite the narrow loss.
“I thought our guys played hard,” Howell said. “We were 4-for-11 from the free-throw line, and that will kill you in a close game. We also had a few half-court sets where we didn’t execute.”
Earlier in the week, the Senators picked up a 45-37 win over Gresham in Fountain City. Downs poured in 19 points, while Lindsay added 13 as Norris continued its strong start to the season.