By BOB REDD
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
PRINCETON — The PikeView Panthers used a strong second half to pull away from the Mount View Golden Knights and earn a 65-37 win in the Class AA Region III, Section 2 semifinals Tuesday night.
With the victory the Panthers earned a spot in next week’s regional play, but will first take on Bluefield, Thursday for the sectional crown.
“We tried to get refocused and re-motivated in the locker room (at halftime) and I think the guys caught onto what we were trying to explain,” said PikeView head coach Colton Thompson. “We conveyed the message to them that we needed to turn things up on defense and do a better job executing on offense. I think we did just that.”
Early on the teams battled back and forth. Mount View forced ties at two, six and eight. Ellis Bryson’s stickback gave the Knights the lead while a pair of Seth Meadows treys buoyed the Panthers. The Golden Knights held a slim 12-11 lead after the first eight minutes.
Close play continued in the second period. For PikeView big man Tyler Ruble took control in the paint and scored four buckets, while Mount View’s speedy Rashawn Brooks tallied eight points in the period. The Panthers forged ahead by seven points, but Mount View closed to within five at the break, 29-24.
The game changed in the third period as PikeView took charge. Takota Bailey and Meadows drained threes, while Ruble, Jason Weitzel and Wood all scored in the paint and in transition. The Panthers defense stiffened and held the Golden Knights scoreless in the quarter, virtually putting the game into the books.
Ruble led PikeView and all scorers with 22 points. Meadows added 16.
“That’s typical Ruble. That’s just the way he plays. It’s usually at least 100 percent,” Thompson said. “Earlier in the game it was kind of to his detriment, he missed a few layups in transition because he was so energetic. Once he got calmed down and got into his groove, he really brought it defensively and did a great job in the post. When he touched the ball in the second half I think he scored almost every time.”
Brooks led Mount View with 15.
“It’s youth, maybe the layoff a little bit, but I thought we didn’t adjust well to the zone and also we didn’t stay with the things that we were doing well,” said Mount View head coach Gary Brown. “We started getting a little more stagnant offensively, playing more one-on-one, no ball movement. Their (PikeView’s) defense kind of stiffened up. They utilized their big guy a lot more, which we knew he could play, and he kind of hurt us. I thought those were the keys.”
With the win PikeView advances to Thursday’s sectional championship game against Bluefield. The Panthers and Beavers split a pair of games during the regular season.
“I think we’ll definitely come in ready,” Thompson said. “I know Bluefield will come in ready and I think it will be a great battle. We feel like our season has brought us to the point where we’re ready for that game and I’m sure they feel that way too. So we’ll be here ready to play and try to take care of business.”

At Princeton High School
MOUNT VIEW (8-12)
Sidney George 0 0-0 0, De’Moni Edwards 2 1-1 5, Rashawn Brooks 6 3-3 15, Kenneth Brown 2 2-2 6, Joseph Hayes 1 0-0 2, Jaedon Burress 0 1-2 1, Timothy Nowlin 0 0-0 0, Ellis Bryson 2 0-0 4, Latrell Hairston 0 0-0 0, Jaquane Imes 2 0-1 4, Marquis Bonds 0 0-0 0, Totals 15 7-9 37.
PIKEVIEW (14-9)
Todd Vest 1 0-0 3, Austin Hazelwood 0 0-0 0, Takota Bailey 2 0-0 5, Seth Wood 3 2-2 8, Seth Meadows 5 2-3 16, Hunter Hill 2 0-0 5, Tyler Ruble 8 6-7 22, Zach Ruble 0 0-0 0, Jason Weitzel 1 2-2 4, Tyler Cecil 0 0-0 0, Sebastian Mann 0 0-2 0, Wayne Brookman 1 0-0 2, Totals 23 12-16 65.
Mount View...............12 12 0 13 — 37
PikeView....................11 18 21 15 — 65
3-point goals: MV None; PV 7 (Meadows 4, Hill, Bailey, Vest) Fouled out: None. Technical fouls: None.