By JOSH DUTTON

Andalusia Star-News

The Luverne Tigers knocked off the Opp Bobcats 52-21 in the first round of the 48th annual Andalusia Invitational tournament Thursday night.

The Bobcats kept it close in the first period, but a big 3-pointer from Kenterius Womack put the Tigers up 15-8 at the end of one. The Bobcats’ Raheem Bonam had 4 points in the first. The 8-point first period total was the highest point total for the Bobcats in the game.

In the second period, the Tigers’ Donta’ Hall made his presence felt down low, using all 6 foot 9 inches of himself to block or alter any shot the Bobcats attempted down low. Dewayne Bonam added 4 points for the Bobcats in the second. At the end of the first half the Bobcats trailed the Tigers 32-14.

The third period wasn’t any kinder to the Bobcats. Lane Foster had the Bobcats only 2 points in the third. The Bobcats went a combined 0-for-6 from the charity strip, and trailed the Tigers 45-16 heading into the final period of play. Hall had three dunks in the period, one of which rocked the gym.

In the fourth period, the Tigers were just able to run the clock off. When the final buzzer sounded, the Tigers walked away with a 52-21 victory.

The Tigers’ leading scorer was Womack with 14 points. Uriah Brown finished with 12 points, and Hall totaled 10.

Dewayne Bonam led the Bobcats with 7 points, and Raheem Bonam and Devonte Williams each had 4 points.

“The kids played exceptionally hard tonight, and we played pretty good defense,” Bobcats’ head coach Sterling Driver said. “We just had some problems scoring, and we are trying to find someone that put it in with consistence. I was proud of them tonight, and we are going to work at it and get better with each game.”

The Bobcats will play the Dale County Warriors today at 4 p.m, and the Tigers will play at 7 p.m. against the Enterprise Wildcats.