Hiawassee – When the Walhalla, South Carolina Razorbacks took home the first two Battle of the States Christmas Tournament championships in 1994 and 1995, little did they know the implications of those back-to-back titles would be felt nearly two-and-a-half decades later.
Last year, Walhalla knocked off Murphy, NC, Union County and Lumpkin County en route to its third tournament title, tying the Panthers for the most BOTS men’s championships in the 25-year history of the event.
Thursday, the Razorbacks and Panthers will meet in the opening round where the winner will have the inside track to a record-breaking fourth tournament title. And while a first-round victory doesn’t guarantee delivery of first-place hardware, a loss will turn a three-time champion into a spectator during Saturday night’s finals.
Walhalla enters at 6-0 following last weekend’s 71-60 win at Rabun County. The Panthers are currently 4-6 but are expected to be at full-strength for the first time in almost three weeks when they take the floor Thursday afternoon.
The Panthers have not reached the BOTS finals since winning it all back in 2010-11. Three years earlier, Union won its second championship when current head coach Corey Garrett was named Tournament MVP. The aforementioned 2006-07 title came on the heels of a runner-up performance in 2005-06.
The first championship came in 2000-01 during Union’s second-ever appearance in the Hiawassee tournament.
Towns County High School will play host to the Panthers and Razorbacks, who are scheduled to tip at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 26. The action begins at 10 a.m. all three days with the final game slated for an 8:30 p.m. start.
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