The Greeneville Greene Devils took on the Jackson South Side Hawks in the TSSAA Class 3A state championship at Murphy Center on Saturday, March 19, 2022, in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The Greeneville boys won. (Photo by Danny Parker)
BY JESSE SMITHEY
MURFREESBORO — The gold-accented Nikes that Jakobi Gillespie wore on Saturday weren’t selected by accident.
Gillespie, the standout Mr. Basketball winning guard from Greeneville High School, had one thing on his mind.
Winning state. Again.
“I wore these district championships, region championships and state championships,” said Gillespie.
“I bring them out to get gold.”
Gillespie scored a game-high 25 points, earned tournament MVP honors for a second consecutive year and guided Greeneville past Jackson South Side, 77-48, in the Class 3A championship win at MTSU’s Murphy Center.
The senior and Belmont signee wound up 10-for-20 from the floor, going 3-for-8 from 3 and recording seven assists and six rebounds in his final time in a Greeneville uniform.
To begin realizing your financial future with resources that fit both you and your values, click on the Thrivent logo above.
Saturday’s win marked the second consecutive state title for Greeneville (31-6), though last year’s came in Class 2A.
But the repeat felt similar in that Greeneville topped South Side (25-4) in the season finale for a second time in a row.
The 2021 championship was decided by one point. This one was a breeze for Greeneville, which exercised its full skill set at maximum strength against the Hawks.
The Greene Devils shot 60 percent from the floor during the first three quarters, when Greeneville’s starters built a commanding 25-point lead, and also made 12 of 23 shots from the 3-point line in the first 24 minutes. Greeneville had South Side beaten on the boards, 23-17, and had forced 15 turnovers by that point.
Greeneville coach Brad Woolsey critiqued his team’s sharpness Friday in a narrow win in the semifinals against Stone Memorial.
Saturday, he watched his players put on a clinic. Starters sat the final 3:31 of the contest.
Greeneville’s 35 made 3s during their three state tournament games set a new TSSAA tournament record. Their 14 made 3s Saturday came up shy of the single-game state-tournament record of 16.
“That was us. That was all the pistons firing. We weren’t a V-8 (engine) firing on four,” said Woolsey. “We were a V-8 firing on eight — plus maybe a little bit of nitro or whatever.
“To finish it out like that was satisfying.”
Last year, Greeneville beat South Side just 47-46 in the championship game.
Greeneville had 43 points at the half this time around, leading the Hawks by 13 at the break.
The Greene Devils’ perimeter play and full-bore effort had much to do with that advantage. Reid Satterfield kick-started it all, hitting three 3s in the first 5:12 of the contest. His third came at the 2:48 mark and put Greeneville ahead 21-7. Adjatay Dabbs also went 2-for-2 from the 3-point line in that span.
Jackson Tillery scrapped and clawed all first quarter, chasing down loose balls, jumping for rebounds in the paint and poking out steals. He had three rebounds and three steals in the first eight minutes, keeping multiple possessions alive for Greeneville.
Gillespie reached the half with 18 points. He got in on the 3-point act late in the first quarter, sending in a trey for a 25-11 lead.
South Side’s 6-2 run to start the second quarter cut Greeneville’s lead 27-20 with 6:19 remaining in the half.
But Gillespie banged home another 3 to push the buffer back to 10 points (34-24) midway through the second quarter, and then Tillery — not known for his shooting — sank a 3 from the corner for a 37-26 lead with 1:56 remaining.
“I just felt like I had to go out and do what I’m supposed to do,” said Tillery, who finished with eight points and two 3s. “They count on me to get steals and rebounds. I had to do that.
“And, (South Side) disrespected me on the 3-point line. So I had to knock down some 3s, I guess.”
All told, Greeneville shot 61.5 percent in the first half and that included an 8-for-15 showing (53.3 percent) from the perimeter.
Tillery added another 3 to start the second half for good measure and moved the lead to 16.
Terry Grove’s 3 at the 5:10 mark of the third made it 51-33, Greeneville. The Greeneville Devils, at that point, had made 10 of 18 from the arc. Grove finished with 12 points.
Satterfield added a 3 with 4 minutes left in the third, and the second half started just like the first — with Greeneville torching nets from deep. The Greene Devils led 55-33.
Gillespie got loose for his now customary fast-break dunk, and the jam put his team ahead comfortably 59-35 with 2:10 left in the third.
Satterfield knocked home another 3 at the 33-second mark of the third for a 25-point lead.
Championship secured.
But Satterfield tossed in another 3 at the start of the fourth, ya know, just for fun. He had 21 points, including a 6-for-12 performance from 3, in his final contest on the high school level.
“Most of us here, it’s our last year. That was our last game. We had to leave it out there on the court,” said Satterfield.
“We couldn’t leave anything in the tank.”
5STAR PHOTOS – GREENEVILLE 3A CHAMPIONSHIP vs. Jackson South Side (March 19, 2022)