The non-conference victory kept the Diamonds undefeated on their homecourt this season and improved their record to 9-4 overall. They never trailed and led by as many as 10 points in the first half before Checotah pulled close on several occasions.
Tehee scored all of his game-high 20 points in the second half and the junior guard had an answer every time Checotah threatened the Diamonds' lead. With the Wildcats within four midway through the third period, Tehee sank back-to-back three pointers and then took a steal in for a layup to extend the Sallisaw advantage to 32-23. He went on to bury two more treys in the fourth quarter.
"Every time they got within arm's length of us, Sam would hit a big shot to put them right back down. He always kind of kept them at arm's length from us. I thought he played a great, great second half and he played his usual great defense too," said Sallisaw head coach Jeff Chronister.
The Diamonds also got double-figure scoring from Donald Sanders with 11 points. Dan McHenry added nine points, Michael Anderson seven and Ryan Clubb five. Sallisaw dominated the boards, outrebounding the Wildcats by a 31-12 margin. McHenry came down with nine rebounds and Anderson had seven.
That superiority on the glass, along with tough defense and 48 percent shooting from the floor allowed Sallisaw to overcome a turnover-plagued performance.
"It wasn't pretty, but I'm thrilled we won and that's the bottom line," said Chronister. "It's important to score more points than your opponent. I don't recall any awards ever being given for style points, so we're thrilled to get this win."
Checotah was led in scoring by James Warrior, who had all three of the Wildcats' three-point baskets and finished with 17 points. Brad Whitmus added 10 points. The Wildcats were playing without starting guard Galen Warrior, who was serving a suspension after getting ejected the previous Saturday at Roland.
"Sometimes when you're in the type of situation they were in, other players step up and play well. We expected them to play well and we weren't expecting it to be easy," said Chronsiter. "They have a lot of pride, they're well-coached, they're really athletic and they shoot the ball well. So we're fortunate to win."
Sanders scored the first six points of the game to give Sallisaw an early cushion and when Clubb added a fastbreak basket at the end of the first quarter, the Diamonds led 12-4.
Sallisaw extended the lead to 17-7 after Sanders nailed a three-pointer from the corner, but Checotah responded with a 7-0 spurt. Anderson made 1-of-2 free throws with :0.4 left in the half and the Diamonds took an 18-14 lead to the locker room.
Checotah was within two before Anderson grabbed a pair of offensive rebounds and scored on putbacks early in the third quarter. Tehee took over on the offensive end shortly after that and Sallisaw led 32-26 entering the fourth period.
The Wildcats were still within five midway through the final stanza, but Sallisaw closed out the contest with a 12-2 run. McHenry started the spurt with a free throw, then stole the ball and passed to Tehee for a layup. Tehee followed that with a three-pointer and a 12-foot jumper, McHenry drilled two more free throws and Tehee's steal and layup in the closing seconds sealed the win.
Sallisaw 61, Checotah 18 (Girls)
A dominant performance from Mandi Pearson and suffocating defense carried the Lady Diamonds to an easy non-conference victory on Tuesday night at Paul Post Fieldhouse.
Pearson had a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds in just three quarters of action as Sallisaw took total control of the game. Checotah never threatened to make a comeback, going without a field goal for almost the entire second half until making a jump shot with 35 seconds left.
As a result, the Lady Diamonds improved to 9-4 on the season while Checotah dropped to 2-11.
Pearson, a senior post, opened the game with seven-straight points and scored 12 during the first quarter. Anna Herndon had five during the period, including a pair of free throws that gave Sallisaw a 17-7 edge entering the second quarter.
The Lady Diamonds sank 8-of-11 shots in the second period and stretched their lead to 33-15 by halftime. They outscored Checotah 12-1 in the third quarter and the Sallisaw reserves shut out the visitors in the fourth quarter until the final seconds.
Herndon finished with 11 points and five rebounds for Sallisaw, which outrebounded Checotah 35-14. The Lady Diamonds also shot 51 percent from the floor and 9-of-13 from the free throw line.
Junior guard Morgan Thomason added seven points for Sallisaw, Brooke Byrd six, LaShawna Fields three, Kelli Branham two, Renae Means two, Molly Hadley two and Shelby Rea two.
Checotah, which was limited to 20 percent (7-of-35) shooting, was led by Jeannia Foreman's five points.
Sallisaw will return to NOAA conference action on Tuesday night when the Diamonds and Lady Diamonds host Roland.
