Pelham beats Wetumpka, Jefferson Christian to finish second at PHS Turkey Tipoff

Published 7:18 pm Monday, December 2, 2024

By Andrew Simonson

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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

PELHAM – The Pelham Panthers made it all the way to the finals of their home tournament with a pair of victories during Thanksgiving week.

Pelham defeated the Wetumpka Indians and Jefferson Christian Eagles in the Pelham Turkey Tipoff to reach the tournament championship game, where they fell to the Class 7A Carver Wolverines out of Montgomery.

Despite the loss, the Panthers were able to gain some momentum to finish out the month of November thanks to their opening round wins over Wetumpka and Jefferson Christian.

Pelham started out the tournament with a matchup against the Indians on Saturday, Nov. 23.

The Panthers fell behind in the early going after Andrew Voyles of Wetumpka took over and scored seven of his team’s 12 first-quarter points.

Long-range baskets from Andy Olds and Sam Tolbert helped Pelham keep pace, but it was a two-possession game going into the second quarter with the Indians leading 12-8.

The Panthers offense flipped a switch in the second, getting points from six different scorers en route to adding 14 points to their first-half total.

That helped Pelham outscore Wetumpka 14-12 in the second quarter and cut the halftime deficit to 24-22.

From there, the Panthers continued to ride their momentum to their best quarter of the game in the third. Grayson Childress dominated for Pelham with eight points in the third quarter while six of his teammates joined him on the scoresheet during the opening eight minutes of the half.

While the Indians also turned in their best offensive quarter of the game in the third, the Panthers still outscored the visitors 24-14 and took a 46-40 lead into the fourth quarter.

However, Wetumpka had one last response in its tank. The Indians knocked down enough free throws to cut down Pelham’s lead, and they eventually tied up the game.

The teams remained deadlocked at the end of regulation, forcing overtime to decide who would advance to the winners’ bracket.

That’s when Olds stepped up in a big way, scoring six of his team’s 10 points in overtime, which helped the Panthers grab the lead for good.

In the end, Pelham won 64-60 in overtime to advance to the next round.

Olds led the way with a team-high 16 points. Kendall Smith and Childress joined him in double figures with 10 points each. Sam Tolbert scored six points and Trey Pittman had five points in the win.

The victory set the table for a dominant semifinal performance against Jefferson Christian on Monday, Nov. 25.

The Panthers stormed out of the gate, using a pair of 3-pointers and eight points total from Olds and five from Tolbert to fuel a 22-point first-quarter outburst.

Combined with a strong defensive effort that surrendered just one field goal, Pelham surged ahead to a 22-4 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back.

The Panthers put their foot on the gas in the second quarter and outscored the Eagles 27-6 in the remaining minutes before halftime. Egypt Daniel, Jayden Robinson, Pittman and Childress each hit multiple shots in the quarter to help Pelham build its lead.

The blazing start on both ends of the floor put the Panthers up 49-10 at halftime, and they were able to see out the win from there.

Jefferson Christian flipped an offensive switch in the third quarter and scored 17 points during that stretch. However, Pelham’s balanced offensive output continued into the third as seven scorers found the bottom of the net.

With Olds continuing to lead the way with six more points in the third quarter, the Panthers slightly extended their lead to 68-27 at the end of the third.

Pelham coasted from there, and despite the Eagles winning the fourth quarter 15-10, it wouldn’t make enough of a difference to flip the outcome, and the Panthers claimed the 36-point victory.

Olds once again led the team with 16 points, all of which came in the opening three quarters. Jacob Gibbs and Childress each scored 10 points, Tolbert had nine points, Daniel and Pittman earned seven points apiece and Jordan Winston scored five points.

In the finals against Carver-Montgomery on Tuesday, Nov. 26, Pelham got off to a strong start, outscoring the Wolverines 18-9 in the first quarter behind strong starts from Olds, Marcus Arnold and Gibbs.

However, the Panthers couldn’t keep pace with the visitors from there, only making two field goals in the second quarter before watching the lead slip away in the third quarter due to 22 points from Carver.

In the end, the Wolverines won 60-51 to secure the tournament championship.

Arnold led the team with 11 points and Gibbs also reached double figures with 10 points. Olds scored nine points, Tolbert had seven points and Eli Lewis added five points.

Pelham will return to the court on Monday, Dec. 2 when they host the Hueytown Golden Gophers for a 7:30 p.m. tip.

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