West Limestone looked to be cruising to the Limestone County Tournament boys championship game, holding a 16-point lead early in the fourth quarter against Clements. But a furious comeback by the Colts made the Wildcats sweat until they ultimately survived with a 50-45 victory.

A 3-point play by Braden Tuten gave West Limestone a 42-26 lead with 7:10 remaining in the fourth quarter, and some fans began leaving the Elkmont gymnasium thinking the game was over.

But Clements outscored West 19-5 over the next seven minutes, and an offensive rebound and putback by Miles Fleming cut the Wildcats’ lead to 47-45 with 30 seconds remaining.

West Limestone then turned the ball over on the ensuing inbounds play, giving Clements a chance to tie or take the lead in the final seconds. But the Colts also turned it over due to a traveling violation with 16 seconds remaining.

Tuten was then fouled and hit two free throws with 13 seconds left to put the Wildcats up by four points. A missed desperation shot by Clements and one final free throw by Levi McCormick with 1 second left set the final five-point margin.

West Limestone won the game despite scoring just 15 points in the second half. The third quarter was especially dire for any fans of offensive basketball, as both team scored just four points, and the Wildcats took a 39-26 lead into the final period.

Alec Baugher led West Limestone with 16 points while Tuten scored 15 and Alex Casteel added eight. Clements was led by Austin Harvell with 15 points, Shane Starnes with 12 and Lucas Bailey with 10.

West Limestone, the tournament’s No. 2 seed and defending champion, advances to the championship game to face fourth-seeded Tanner in a rematch of last year’s boys tournament final.

Limestone County Girls Tournament

Tanner 46, Clements 41

The old sports cliché says that defense wins championships. Tanner’s girls team lives by that mantra, as the Rattlers overcame a poor shooting performance to defeat Clements behind a strong defensive effort.

A steal and layup by Nautica Noble with 1:45 remaining provided the winning points as the Rattlers held off a comeback effort by the Colts to take the five-point tournament semifinal win.

Tanner held a 38-30 lead with 6:14 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Clements went on an 11-3 run to tie the game when Emrey McGill scored on a fast-break layup following a Tanner turnover with 2:20 remaining.

The Rattlers missed a shot on their next possession, but after Clements gathered in the rebound, Noble stole the ball and laid it in to give Tanner a 43-41 lead with 1:45 left.

Clements had two chances to tie the score, but missed two free throws with 1:33 left and then turned the ball over with just over a minute remaining.

Tanner was able to run 30 seconds off the clock before Noble was fouled and calmly sank two free throws with 31 seconds remaining to give the Rattlers a two-possession lead. Clements turned the ball over again on its next possession, and Kennedy Lewter closed the scoring by hitting one final free throw with 16 seconds left.

Nahri’yah Timmons led Tanner with 12 points while Ikia Mitchell scored 11 and Noble and Lewter both tallied nine.

Clements was led by McGill, who scored a game-high 18 points.

Tanner, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, will face top seed East Limestone in Saturday’s championship game.