PEAK PERFORMANCE: Teams hit their stride ahead of postseason

Mother Nature slowed down basketball season, but the momentum of the Unicoi County teams continues to snowball. The Blue Devils boys clinched the Three Rivers Conference title on Friday with a defeat of Chuckey-Doak, and the girls team extended its winning streak to six with victories last week against Providence Academy and Chuckey-Doak. First-year boys coach Brandon Broyles' Blue Devils clinched the league's outright title with a 74-45 rout of Chuckey-Doak on Friday. "It was a special night for our seniors," Broyles said. "This is a group that has played together for a lot of years. They love each other, they care about each other, and they play well together. It's an honor to coach them and watch them compete. "One of our goals coming into the season was to win the regular-season conference championship and earn the No. 1 seed in the district tournament. I'm proud of our kids for accomplishing that." Freshman guard A.J. Thomas made 5 of 7 from 3-point range en route to a game-high 21 points for the Blue Devils. All-time leading scorer Jackson Simmons tallied 17 points and five assists. Fellow senior Brady Simmons finished with nine points (4-of-5 shooting), five rebounds and five assists. Cade Peterson and Avery Hatcher also scored nine points apiece. "It was good to get back in the gym and get to play," Broyles said. "With the weather, everything has been tricky and it knocked us out of our routine. So being able to practice Wednesday and Thursday and get back on the floor Friday really helped us knock some rust off. … "We were close to having five players in double figures, and that shows the unselfish way this group plays. It wasn't perfect, but considering the weather and the layoff, I was very pleased with the overall team effort." Unicoi County is scheduled to visit Johnson County on Monday and take on Elizabethton on Tuesday. "We've got a tough week ahead with Johnson County and Elizabethton," Broyles said. "Those are quality teams and tough environments, but those are the kinds of games that help prepare you for the postseason." Broyles continues to be impressed with the collective attitude of his players. "I couldn't ask for a better group of kids," he said. "They work hard, they do what you ask on and off the floor and our seniors lead by example. This is a tight-knit group, and they're a blessing to coach." The Blue Devils girls team ended a weather-related layoff by sputtering past Providence Academy, 39-30, on Thursday. Brooklynn Sparks scored 14 points and Kaley Toney tallied 11 points (three 3-pointers) and seven rebounds. "Brooklynn scored it well early, and they ran some junk on her later on," Unicoi County coach Jordan Simmons said. "Kaley made three really big shots that gave us some separation in the third quarter. I think we got up 16 or 17 at one point in the third, and we were able to hang on. "It was just nice to be back in a gym playing basketball. We had one practice in the week between the West Greene game and this one. So it was good to see us battle and sustain our effort even when it got a little rusty on the offensive end." Abigail Vidrio led Unicoi County with four assists. Laney Rogers had a team-high three steals. "Our defensive effort was really good in this one," Simmons said. "Providence has some length and some really good athletes. And Stacia (Silvers) does a really good job over there. Their length in their zone gave us some issues and we turned it over more than we needed to, but in the end, our toughness and grit on defense and on the boards was enough to get us the win." The Blue Devils showed signs of playing their second game in 24 hours during their 51-40 defeat of Chuckey-Doak on Friday. Vidrio scored a team-high 10 points. "This was another game where we got a little loose with the ball and turned it over at a higher rate than we want, but our effort was great," Simmons said. "Being our second game in 24 hours after all that time off, and only shooting 10 percent (2-20) from 'three,' I felt like our effort was consistent. Games like this are good for us going into the postseason. Having to fight and scrap and gut out a conference win is something I'm not sure we could've done six weeks ago, but I feel like we are a different team now." Rogers (eight points, five steals) and Carly Baxter (eight points, four rebounds) had productive games against the Black Knights. So did Danika Hendricks (seven points, five steals), Anders (five points, five rebounds), Toney (10 rebounds) and Sparks (six points). "Give Doak credit, they never gave up," Simmons said. "I think we got up by 19 or 20 at one point, but Doak kept fighting. They hit five threes in the fourth quarter and most were contested. In the end, this is another conference win, and we have to try to keep stacking those and building our confidence every opportunity we get." Unicoi County was scheduled to visit Johnson County on Monday and go to Elizabethton on Tuesday for a non-conference game. "We've won six straight games, and we have a huge week coming up," Simmons said. "Johnson County has shown that they are one of, if not the hottest team in our conference, and they are playing really well right now, especially at home. It's going to be a tough game in a tough environment, so we will have to be at the top of our game to go up there and compete and give ourselves a chance to win. "We go to Elizabethton on Tuesday, and that will be a great test as we start heading toward the postseason."