The Luverne Tigers have won 11 out of their last 12 games this season, and head coach Richard Dorsey hopes they carry that fire on over into Friday night’s tournament.

With a 16-6 overall season record and a 5-1 area record, the Tigers are the number one seed. They’ll be hosting the tournament Friday night, with the championship game being played on Monday, Feb. 9.

“This has been the toughest schedule I’ve had since I’ve been here,” Dorsey, who is in his seventh season at Luverne, said. “The team has been really determined, especially since the Christmas break…They’ve come a long way since then, and I’ve been real proud of how they’ve worked together over these last few weeks.”

“We want all the fans to come out and support us Friday night, because we definitely want to be in the championship game Monday night,” he said.

Central-Hayneville is 4-2 in the area, and Calhoun is 3-3. Straughn is 0-6 in area play.

Friday night will begin with Central and Calhoun playing at 5:30 p.m., followed by the number one seed, Luverne, against the number four seed, Straughn, at 7 p.m.

The winners of the two games will play the championship game Monday night at 7 p.m. at Luverne High School. Admission will be $6.

The Tigers defeated Pike County 57-53 on Jan. 29, with Robert Freeman leading the way with 17 points and 6 rebounds. Rashad Cannon followed with 11 points and 8 assists.

Also for the Tigers, Darren Foster added 8 points, while Morrease Barber dropped in 7.

Ketric Jackson put up 5 points, and Walter Barber had 4 points.

Luverne also downed 6A Enterprise on Jan. 31, 49-47. Again, Robert Freeman led the Tigers in the victory with 14 points and 9 rebounds, followed by Morrease Barber with 8 points and 10 rebounds. Ketric Jackson had 7 points for the Tigers, while Rashad Cannon also added in six points.

Lonnie Freeman dropped in six points and pulled down 7 rebounds, and Darren Foster had four points and seven assists.

“A lot of people were surprised we beat them (Enterprise), but I wasn’t surprised,” Dorsey said.

“We have been in a sub-regional tournament five out of the last six years,” Dorsey added. “When you include this year, we’ve also hosted the area tournament four out of the last five years, so that’s something to be proud of, too.”

Dorsey, who has been at Luverne School for the last seven years, has an overall record of 111 wins and 71 losses.

“We could not have had the success we’ve had over the years without the dedication of our players, the support of our coaches and administrators, the staff, and especially our Luverne Tiger fans,” he said.