Unranked Rams to face Marshall

A talented Tyner basketball team that has been overlooked by state rankings all season gets the chance to prove itself early when the state basketball tournament tips off this week.

When the TSSAA announced its boys' state tournament pairings Saturday morning, the Rams drew ninth-ranked Marshall County in the opening round of the Class AA bracket, Wednesday at 6 p.m. EDT.

Marshall County is led by one of the state's top scorers, Kedren Johnson, a Mr. Basketball finalist who had 44 points in the state sectional win with Louisville coach Rick Pitino in attendance. Johnson is ranked the No. 85 junior prospect in the nation according to Rivals.com, with scholarship offers from Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Memphis and Alabama.

Despite having at least three future college signees and handing second-ranked Howard three of its four losses this season, the Rams have yet to earn a spot in the state's top 10 poll all season and are just one of two unranked teams in the AA bracket. But the Rams have beaten six of their last nine opponents by double digits.

"I like the team we're taking over there," Tyner coach Gerald Harris said. "At this point it depends on who's playing good. This is the first time this group of kids have gone to the state tournament, but we've played a lot of games together and we've played pretty well in our last few games."

When the state tournament tips off Wednesday with the Class A bracket, Arts & Sciences (27-7) will play Harriman (21-10) in the first game of the day at 11 a.m. EDT. Grace Academy (22-7) will play Oliver Springs (22-10) in another Class A quarterfinal Wednesday at 4:15, followed by Tyner vs.

Marshall County in the first game of the AA bracket.

Also in AA, Howard (26-4) opens against fifth-ranked Liberty (27-8) at 12:45 p.m. EDT Thursday. The semifinals for all classes will be Friday.

Harriman is back in the tournament for the first time since 1995, and Oliver Springs returns for the first time in 11 years. Those teams' tournament inexperience, their double-digit losses and the recent success by Chattanooga teams in Class A may prompt the CSAS and Grace coaches to warn their players about the dangers of overconfidence.

"I think after the way we played at home in the sub-state that overconfidence will not be an issue," said CSAS coach Mark Dragoo, referring to the Patriots' come-from-behind win over Red Boiling Springs. "Our district is very tough and we played a tough region tournament and probably had one of the hardest overall schedules in Class A, so we should be ready.

"I think both Chattanooga teams got pretty good draws, and I really like playing the first game. I don't like having to sit around and wait and watch everybody else. I'd play at 8 a.m. if they would let us."