1 shot made the difference
Tuesday, December 2, 2014 3:11 pm
By CHIP CIRILLO, Courier Correspondent One shot was stuck in Matt Rigsby's mind all weekend. East Nashville's Thomas Booker, a college prospect, hit a 3-pointer with 21 seconds left in regulation to force overtime in a 58-56 win over Cannon County's boys in the first round of the Mitch Wilson Classic on Friday. "Their stud, Booker, hit about a 23-foot, contested 3 off a side-out play," said Rigsby, the Cannon County coach. "He's a D-1 kid. He's a 6-4 kid that can flat-out play. "He can get you inside, he can elevate over you. That's all people told me after the game or the next day, 'Oh, my gosh, I can't believe how much that kid elevated to shoot that 3.' Jacob Nave was the one that contested it and Booker's feet were at Jacob's waist, almost. He hit a dagger." Booker led all scorers with 29 points. Nave missed a shot at the buzzer in regulation. East Nashville finished second in Class AA last season. "We're not built on moral victories, but if you sat in the gym that night and you weren't proud of our bench and the kids that were out on the floor 1-15 I don't know what game you were watching," Rigsby said. "For both teams, for that matter. It was just a really well-played high school basketball game for two teams that hope to be playing very late in the season." Josh Ruehlen scored 13 points to lead three Lions in double figures. Cannon County (4-2) rebounded with a 62-56 win over Middle Tennessee Christian on Saturday. The classic is named after the State Farm Insurance agent in Woodbury who sponsors the tournament. "We're getting good minutes from everybody," Rigsby said. "Briar Jakes is definitely giving us a good lift off the bench. The sixth man is not really discussed very much, but he definitely deserves recognition." Cannon County visits Central Magnet (2-6) for its District 8-AA opener on Friday. Warren Co. 7 12 15 8--42 East Nashville 15 16 12 9 6--58
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