BY KYLE LOVERN
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
NAUGATUCK, W.Va. — The Tug Valley Panthers, ranked No. 1 in Class A, gave coach Garland “Rabbit” Thompson an early Christmas present as they downed visiting Huntington St. Joseph Catholic on Tuesday, Dec. 23.
The Irish came in ranked No. 4 in the Mountain State. It was an intense, physical battle between two of the state’s top Class A teams at the TVHS gym in Naugatuck.
Tug Valley led 36-28 heading into the dressing room at the half. Braydun Ferris had 12 first-half points, while Carson Newsome scored 11 and Zade Rash nine.
The Panthers led 47-41 after three quarters.
St. Joe did not go away and pulled to within three points in the final quarter, but the Panthers forced a couple of turnovers and hit a couple of key shots down the stretch to get the win.
Ferris ended the game with 21 points, while Rash scored 20 and Newsome 13. Preston May added eight for TV, while Cam Slone and Jace Hale each scored 2 points.
Cole Paynter led St. Joe with 24 points. Grady Paynter scored 13 points, Brody Runyon eight, and Cyless Allen and Isaiah Sanders both added six points.
Tug Valley forced St. Joe into 12 turnovers, many of which led to points on the other end of the court.
The Panthers were scheduled to host the annual Kaydence Memorial Holiday Classic two-day tourney this week at the Tug Valley gym in Naugatuck.
Score by quarters:
St. Joe: 18 10 13 20 – 61
Tug: 18 18 11 19 – 66