Wildcats Win 6th Consecutive Game
The Sulphur Springs Wildcats hosted Paris Thursday, in a game which was delayed due to weather. Despite the temperatures being ice-cold, the Wildcats were hoping to stay red-hot, looking to pick up a sixth consecutive win and stay unbeaten in district play.
The last time these two teams faced each other was a Friday the 13th matchup, and one that began Sulphur Springs’ five-game winning streak. The Wildcats were led by an outburst from senior Malachi Myles , who had an explosive 19-point game on 9-13 from the field in that first matchup.
Thursday, offense was hard to come by early, as both teams needed a bit of time to thaw back out. It was senior Cole Theofiledes who helped kick things off for the Wildcats’ offense, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 7-4 lead at the 5:24 mark in the opening frame.
Sulphur Springs was able to hold on to their lead for the remainder of the opening quarter, thanks in part to Kordrick Turner who scored on a layup and knocked down a free throw late in the frame. With just a one-point lead, sophomore Macaulin Rollison pump faked, getting his defender to bite and creating room to knock down a 3-pointer in the final seconds to extend the lead to 13-9 entering the second quarter.
Making sure the game didn’t get away from them, Paris opened the second quarter on fire, going on a 6-0 run to take the lead back at 15-13, though sophomore DJ Wilkerson would quickly tie things up with mid-range jumper. Sulphur Springs answered back with an 8-2 run of their own, thanks in large part to senior Parker Whisenhunt who’s back-to-back scores forced Paris to use a timeout.
After the timeout, Sulphur Springs found their rhythm from deep, as senior Branson Lynn knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers. The final score of the half was a deep ball from Whisenhunt, bringing the Wildcats lead to 32-27 at the end of the first half.
Whisenhunt kept his momentum going to open the second half, scoring the first four points of the frame. Sulphur Springs began to pull away from Paris, extending their lead to 42-33 before Paris would be forced to use another timeout with 3:14 left in the third.
Paris refused to let themselves get down by too much, keeping things within single-digit’s for the remainder of the quarter. In the final minute Theofiledes was able to knock down another 3-pointer and Turner converted an and-one, as Sulphur Springs would go into the fourth quarter with an eight-point 49-41 lead.
Wanting to put things away as quickly as possibly, Sulphur Springs opened the final frame with an impressive 9-0 run, thanks to a quick five-point swing from sophomore Theo McKelvey. Turner also threw down a huge dunk in the opening minutes of the frame, putting both the lead and the momentum fully in Sulphur Springs’ control.
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The Wildcats continued to run away with it, as the crowd continued to get louder and louder. The gym erupted late in the game, when Turner and Whisenhunt had a two-on-one. Turner passed the ball to Whisenhunt, who lobbed up right back to him, resulting in a huge alley-pop for Turner.
With just a couple minutes left to go, Jaxon Shaver knocked down a 3-pointer and Rollison followed with the final bucket of the night, as Sulphur Springs walked away with the 69-47 win, despite leading just 48-41 entering the final frame.
Whisenhunt was the leading scorer for the Wildcats, scoring 17 points on 6-10 from the field and 4-7 from the free throw line. Whisenhunt also led the team with four assists, something he’s done well all season long.
Turner also had a great night, picking up yet another double-double with 15 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Turner also dished out three assists and shot an impressive 54.5% from the field.
Lynn was the third and final Wildcat to finish in double-digits, scoring 11 points and shooting an efficient 3-6 from behind the 3-point line. In 26 minutes played, Lynn had a game-high plus-minus of +23.
Theofieldes had one of his strongest outings of the season, scoring nine points and making three of his four attempts from behind the 3-point line, while sophomores McKelvey and Rollison each had five points.
Other scorers included Shaver, Wilkerson and Myles who each had two points. Lane Hunt, Gavin White and Carter Arrington each checked in as well, in a game where the Wildcats saw 12 different players get minutes.
The win pushes Sulphur Springs record to 24-7 and improves their winning streak to six games. The Wildcats now have a two-game lead for the district title, with just four games left to play.
They will be back in action Friday, against Liberty-Eylau, the team who is currently in second place in the district. A win against the Leopards would give them a three-game lead with just three games left to play, putting them in great position to lock-in the district title.
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