The Chuckey-Doak boys basketball team got pushed to the limit on Thursday night, but the Black Knights were able to survive a scare from the Kingsport Area Christian Home Education Association to earn a 54-53 win on opening night.
“This bunch didn’t make it easy, but what a good win,” Chuckey-Doak coach Sam Broyles said. “These guys are battle tested now, and they came through when it mattered most. I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The game was clinched with 2.9 seconds left when the Wildcats fouled Logan Malone as he drove to the hoop. The freshman calmly swished both charity tosses to give his team the final lead of the night.
“You couldn’t have more pressure on you than that. That was awesome to see from a freshman,” Broyles said. “In the JV game I was having them hold the ball late and make them foul us. I wanted to see who can make pressure free throws. It ended up paying off in the varsity game big time.”
Broyles was most proud of how his team responded when they got pushed late in the game. A year ago the Black Knights might have wilted under the pressure, but seeing them answer on Thursday has the coach optimistic after one night of action.
“It’s great to see them pull out a game like this. I hope it gives them confidence. I think it showed that experience matters, and they got that last year,” Broyles said.
Thursday’s fourth quarter started with Chuckey-Doak leading 38-33, but that advantage quickly shrank as the Wildcats went to 6’9” twice in the first minute for a pair of layup.
Grindstaff got Chuckey-Doak going with a three-pointer on an inbound play, but KACHEA came back to tie things at 41-41 with 5:50 left to play.
Again Grindstaff answered the call by nailing a contested triple from the right wing.
KACHEA tied things at 46-46, and Grindstaff gave the Black Knights the lead once more when he slashed through traffic and softly laid one off the glass.
Grindstaff led all scorers on Thursday with 19 points, and his 10 points in the fourth quarter were what gave the Black Knights a chance.
“That showed how important Ryland is to this team. He had seven rebounds on top of that. He made some big plays for us there in the fourth quarter,” Broyles said.
The Wildcats were not done and with 10 seconds remaining Joyner powered in a shot from the block and turned it into three points the old-fashioned way for a 53-52 KACHEA lead.
Down to their last chance Malone was able to deliver the win for Chuckey-Doak at the free-throw line.
While the night came to a thrilling end its start was tough to endure as it took Chuckey-Doak almost five minutes to get a shot to fall.
Grindstaff made the first two buckets for the Black Knights including a fade-away jumper from the elbow. As time expired in the first quarter Malone dropped in a runner and gave Chuckey-Doak a 10-9 lead.
In the second quarter the Knights seemed to find their groove and after Grindstaff and Gavin Crum sank back-to-back triples Chuckey-Doak led 20-11.
With one minute left in the first half Chance Malone put in a driving layup that gave the Knights a 27-18 lead.
At the buzzer Zane Hayes put back a miss for KACHEA that closed the gap to 27-21.
With 3:10 left in the third quarter KACHEA’s Daniel Joyner nailed a triple that closed the gap to 32-29. Chuckey-Doak was able to get free throws from Chance Malone and Knox McAmis before Logan Malone turned a steal into a layup for a 38-33 lead.
Chuckey-Doak survived to win a nail biter 54-53 on Thursday night. Head Coach Sam Broyles told us how he felt after the exciting win. pic.twitter.com/OP8EPMBMXm
— GreeneSportsZone (@GSportsZone) November 21, 2025
The Black Knights boys basketball team defended their court last night, defeating KACHEA by a score of 54-53. #FirstHorizon pic.twitter.com/QbAW3BIIpA
— GreeneSportsZone (@GSportsZone) November 21, 2025
With 2.9 seconds remaining, Chuckey-Doak Freshman Logan Malone went to the line with his team down, 52-53.
He sank both. #FirstHorizon pic.twitter.com/3Tjc6jkYjN
— GreeneSportsZone (@GSportsZone) November 21, 2025
