Warriors pull out a tough victory over Warren County

The administration at White County high school might want to consider installing oxygen tanks on the sidelines of Roy Sewell Gymnasium.  The referees for the Warriors vs. Pioneers game, on Nov. 29, must have been lightheaded from blowing their whistles over 50 times in the game.  The game had very little flow and rhythm to it because of all the calls on the court.  Neither team could complain that they were being unfairly treated as the calls were equally bad on both sides of the court.  The Warriors had to fight through the officiating and a scrappy well-coached Warren team to gain a victory.

The Warriors got off to a sluggish start offensively. Tripp Pinion got the scoring going with a drive to the basket. The momentum began to build as Jake Davis got hot from 3-point range.   Japheth Richmond had a huge dunk. Brock hit a 3 at the end of the quarter, but Warren County held their own in the quarter and only trailed the Warriors 18-16 after one.

The second quarter saw a back-and-forth battle between the old rivals. Richmond got a put back slam. Jake Davis got a 3-point play the old-fashioned way.  Pinion just kept hitting shots from all over the court.  The referees blew their whistles on almost every trip down the court.  The Warriors took a 1-point lead into halftime at 33-32.

The winless Warren County Pioneer team came out in the second half with a determination to take home a victory to McMinnville.  The Pioneers would take the lead, but Tripp Pinion began to take over the game. He was unstoppable. He would drive into the lane, contorting his body, making difficult shot after shot.  Warren County did have a 4-point lead going into the fourth quarter. Thomas Brock had two 3-point shots that were clutch. The first 3 pulled the Warriors within 1 and the second gave the Warriors the lead.  The Warriors would not look back and took the victory 75-67.

Tripp Pinion had a special night scoring a career-high 23 points on 9-9 shooting from the field and 5-5 shooting from the free throw line.  Jake Davis added 18 points on the night. Thomas Brock scored 13. Thomas Paul had 8. Japheth Richmond had 6, while Christian Henderson had 5, and Logan Dickerson had 2 points.