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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

ALABASTER – The Thompson Warriors had one mission entering the night: defeat Tuscaloosa County to avoid potentially facing the No. 1 team in the state in the area semifinals.

They did just that, beating the Tuscaloosa County Wildcats 68-39 on Friday, Jan. 24 at Warrior Arena to sweep the season series with the Wildcats and wrap up the No. 3 seed in Class 7A, Area 5.

As a result, Thompson dodged a dangerous matchup with Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa but will still have a tall task against Prattville in the area semifinals at Hillcrest High School.

It was also a big night for one of the Warriors’ top scorers as Destinee Ealy surpassed 1,500 career points on Friday night. She scored 24 points to lead both teams in scoring and power Thompson’s offense in the win.

Ealy got going early with four points in the first quarter while Sydney Coney led the way with seven of her team’s 15 points.

The Warriors held Tuscaloosa County to just two field goals in the first and took a 15-5 lead into the second quarter.

The Wildcats started finding their shooting stroke in the remaining minutes of the half, scoring 12 points in the second. Ealy and Coney continued to help power Thompson’s offense as Ealy added five points to her first-half total and Coney scored four to get into double figures.

Kayla Russell got onto the scoresheet thanks to her frequent trips to the free throw line, where she went 4-for-6 in the second. The Warriors extended their lead to 30-17 heading into the halftime locker room.

Thompson’s dynamic duo continued to take over in the third quarter. Ealy knocked down an early 3-pointer and went on to make two more shots to score seven points in the third. Coney also scored four more points as the offense continued to click.

The Warriors once again outpaced Tuscaloosa County, outscoring the visitors 19-9 in the third quarter to extend the lead to 49-26 at the end of the quarter.

Going into the fourth quarter with a dominant lead, Thompson kept its foot on the gas until the end. The Warriors scored 19 points for the second straight quarter while continuing to balance the scoring across their offense.

In the end, Thompson took the 29-point win to sweep the season series and position itself well for the postseason.

In addition to Ealy’s game-high 24 points, Coney scored 18 points. Russell earned nine points and Jordyn Smith and Skylar Hightower each finished with six points.

The Warriors improved to 11-10 overall and 2-4 in area play. They will finish out area play with a pair of non-area games against Region 3 foes as they travel to Hewitt-Trussville on Monday, Jan. 27 at 5:30 p.m. and host Vestavia Hills on Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 5 p.m. in their final home game of the regular season.