By ALEX DRISKELL / Special to the Reporter

COLUMBIANA – The Shelby County Wildcats took on 5A Area 8 foe Talladega High School on a Dec. 8 matchup that saw defense dictate much of the game as the Wildcats walked away with the 47-43 victory. The win is the first area win of the year for Shelby County.

Tough defense ruled the first quarter, as both teams could not play effective offense, nevertheless Talladega held a 7-4 lead midway through the first. A quick 4-0 run with 2:10 left gave the Tigers a 11-4 lead, but the Wildcats never quit as they clawed their back to cut the lead to 13-7 going into the second.

Slow play continued to plague both teams as Talladega held a 15-10 with 5:00 left in the half. However, Shelby County went on an 8-4 run to end the half as Talladega took a 19-18 lead into the break.

Defense again ruled as the Tigers only lead 22-21 midway through the third quarter of play. Both offenses were able to muster a little offense as Shelby County held a 28-26 lead late. Scoring then again slowed as Shelby County took a 30-28 lead into the final quarter of play.

Offense finally broke through as the Wildcats held a 39-34 lead halfway through the fourth. Both teams went back and forth with Shelby County still holding a 44-39 lead late. The Wildcats added a quick two-pointer, but the Tigers answered with a quick three point basket, to make it a 46-42 game with 37 seconds left to play in the game. Talladega added a quick free-throw with 25 seconds left to cut the Wildcats’ lead to 46-43, but senior guard Quint Montgomery added a clutch free-throw to preserve the 47-43 win.

Shelby County was lead by senior big man David Watkins who tallied 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 blocks on the night. The Wildcats will trek to Clay-Central this Friday to take on the Volunteers in another 5A Area 8 match up.