The Gibson Southern boys’ junior varsity basketball team faced off against the Washington Hatchets on January 19. The Hatchets came out firing early, scoring the first five points of the game.

“After going down five points early, I thought we really started to compete and play our game, which included getting easy baskets off of offensive rebounds and playing much more aggressively, particularly on defense,” head coach Matt Obert said. 

The Titans then sparked a flame, and it was off to the races through the first quarter. Gibson Southern switched from a slower style of play and began to get the bulk of their points in transition. Ten of the 15 points scored by the Titans in the first quarter were fast break points. After the first quarter, Gibson Southern was up 15 to 9. The Titans continued through the second quarter, dominating not only in the points column but also on the boards. Going into halftime, the Titans had a commanding lead, 29 to 11.

“We played together and executed on both sides of the court,” sophomore forward Jackson Redding said.

Heading into the second half, the Titans did not stop pressing on the pedal. Gibson Southern scored 22 points in the third quarter and held the Hatchets to only 2 points. This was fueled by a pair of threes from sophomore Jackson Lamb as well as a pair of threes from junior Eli Chandler.

“We took good shots on offense, and we put pressure on them defensively that they couldn’t handle,” sophomore guard Garett Reid said.

After the fourth quarter, the Titans finished off the game in a commanding fashion, making the final score 57 to 25. Chandler led the way with 17 points, and both Lamb and Reid added nine points each. 

The Titans advanced to 4-5 on the season with this win.