Hawks' Fast Start Buries Baylor, 70-37, For BOP Title

Once-beaten Hamilton Heights decided to end the suspense of Saturday night’s Best of Preps championship game against Baylor quickly.

Racing to a 14-0 lead – a spree that saw the Red Raiders make as many turnovers (four) as attempted shots – the Hawks dismantled Baylor, 70-37, behind balanced scoring and another smothering performance by their defense.

“That’s a fine basketball team,” Baylor coach Austin Clark said. “They’re very athletic and they played very well and we didn’t play as well as we could, but they had something to do with that.”

Hamilton Heights (14-1), extending their winning streak to 13 games during which the average margin of victory was 25.8 points, jumped on the Red Raiders from the opening tip.

Six-foot-6-inch senior Joan Duran needed just 27 seconds to rip a 3-pointer from the right wing to trigger the quick-start offense.

Ezekiel Balogun, a 6-5 junior, drove the baseline for a layup and Abdulhakim Ado, 6-10 and one of the country’s top junior post prospects, made a point-blank shot, senior point guard Milos Andelic, who has added a steadying hand after missing four games with an ankle injury, got a steal and layup and Balogun added a free throw that gave the Hawks a 12-0 lead with 5:32 on the clock.

Ado capped the explosive start with a two-handed dunk off an assist by Silas Adheke and the Hawks enjoyed a stunning 14-0 start before either team broke much of a sweat.

“That was great,” said Ado, who had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots to earn the tournament’s most valuable player award. “We decided to come out with full energy and be enthusiastic about playing.

“We wanted to make a statement and we really did that.”

What was the Hawks’ message to Baylor (5-3)? It’s going to be a long night.

Ado ravaged opponents for 30 points, 28 rebounds and 22 blocked shots in three tournament games for the Hawks, ranked No. 3 in the state by MaxPreps.com. He already has gathered scholarship offers from several big-time colleges, including Louisville, Memphis, Vanderbilt, Penn State, Arizona State and Georgia.

In the opening round, the Hawks clubbed Notre Dame, 78-36, and then managed to hold off Central, 61-54, in the semifinals – the closest game they played in the tourney at Chattanooga State.

“I definitely think this was one of our better games of the season,” Hawks coach Zach Ferrell said. “I’m very proud of the guys for coming out with so much energy and passion. They had a blast playing the game.”

In their last eight games, the Hawks have given up more than 50 points just twice. During that stretch one opponent scored 25, one got 36, two put up 40 and another 43.

American Basketball Institute scored 73 points, most by any Hawks opponent this season, and still lost by 15 points. Providence Day followed that game three days later and tallied 72 points in a 10-point victory over Hamilton Heights, its lone loss of the season.

Then, the defense started clicking.

“Defensive intensity has been great and a big factor in our success,” Ferrell said. “We’ve got some really good defensive players and Abdul does a great job doing so much around the basket. Holding our opponents to low scores and low field-goal percentages has been a point of emphasis.”

In wins over Ooltewah and Brainerd, Baylor freshman Patrick Urey scored a combined 37 points.

Against the Hawks, who start four players from 6-5 to 6-10, held Urey to five points, but none in the first half when the 6-foot-10-inch Ado (he has a 7-5 wing span) and 6-8 Silas Adheke rotated on and off the Red Raiders standout.

Urey’s first points came on a layup – Ado was on the bench – with 4:25 left in the third quarter. With all five Hawks starters on the sideline, Urey converted a three-point play at the 4:14 mark of the final period.

The Red Raiders faced the Hawks’ unrelenting pressure from end to end on the court and Baylor ball handlers were constantly being harassed by point guard Milos Andelic, who started each game in the BOP tournament after missing four previous outings with an ankle injury.

“It’s good to have Milos back with us,” Ado said. “He has a good mindset about playing defense. When the coaches tell him to lock down somebody, he will do that.”

Already leading by 23, the Hawks scored the first eight points of the third quarter that produced a 51-20 advantage.

Hamilton Heights, which next plays at McCallie on Jan. 7, was still leading by 30 points when it ran off 12 straight points for a 65-24 lead with 44.2 seconds left in the third period.

Adheke started that spree with a layup, Duran hit a lane floater and baseline jumper, Strahinja Micakovic drove for a layup and reserve Darryle Pitts, a 5-6 junior guard, drilled a 3 to end it.

Eight seconds before Pitts’ 3-pointer, Ferrell had all five starters on the bench with him, and they stayed there while back-up players finished off the championship victory.

“This tournament will definitely build our confidence going into the second half of the season,” Ferrell said. “To win championships on back-to-back weekends is great. It was awesome to play in this environment and to come out on top is really encouraging.”

The Hawks helped attract sellout crowds on Saturday and Monday. The only game they played in which seats were available was the opener against Notre Dame, which started at 4 p.m.

Balogun led the Hawks with 13 points, including six in the 14-0 run to open the game. He also had eight rebounds, four steals and four blocked shots. Duran and Micakovic joined Ado at 10 points.

Baylor’s Austin Maize paced the Red Raiders with nine points, all coming in the first half.

Central 71, Brainerd 55: Rick Rogers has been at Central 25 years. In 24 previous years, the Purple Pounders had beaten Brainerd twice, both times by one point.

Now make it three.

“At this point, it’s no longer about a physical contest,” Rogers said. “We have the athleticism. We’ve been facing a mental mountain in recent years, but we got over the top tonight.”

The Pounders (9-3), placing five players in double figures, finished off the Panthers with a 27-point fourth quarter and posted a win in what has been a one-sided rivalry for the first time in 12 seasons.

In the final eight minutes, Central’s offense went dunkalicious on the Panthers (9-3) and had the sellout crowd in its corner. The Pounders started gaining favor with attending fans in a 61-54 loss to powerful Hamilton Heights.

Tre Tiller scored eight of his 11 points – on four dunks – in the fourth quarter on , all coming on dunks and in one short spurt had back-to-back slams. Ryan Montgomery added another slam in the period.

“This is the best feeling in the world,” said Teeron Hayes, who led the Pounders with a game-high 22 points. “And we were having so much fun out it was crazy. We gave Hamilton Heights a run for their money and that’s why we beat Brainerd. We have to keep this going and we can’t have a letdown. Last year we played down against some opponents.”

It won’t be long before the Pounders see the Panthers again. The two District 6-AA rivals will play at Brainerd on Jan. 16.

“We have to take advantage of this,” Rogers said. “We knew the teams in this tournament would be the best we’ll see and the atmosphere here will prepare us for the postseason. Hamilton Heights made us better. We won’t see another team like them again this season.”

When the fourth period started Central was nursing a 44-40 lead. The Pounders went up 57-47 when Hayes drained a 3 from the right wing and 20 seconds later the fans erupted when Tiller got his final dunk of the night.

JaMichael Poole scored 16 points, 10 coming in a 41-point second half. Montgomery and Rodney Benford each had 10 points.

Vesta Melvin and Jesse Walker each scored 11 points for the Panthers.

Notre Dame 61, Ooltewah 46: The Fighting Irish’s Tyler Byrd and Kealy Green combined for 47 points, outscoring the entire Owls team, and coach J.P. Nerbun’s squad rolled to a 15-point victory to capture fifth place in the three-day tournament.

Green finished with 22 points, 15 coming in the first half when Notre Dame (6-8) built a 27-22 advantage.

Byrd led all scorers with 25 points and got 20 after halftime.

Each offensive star had 10 field goals and Byrd went 5-of-6 from the free-throw line.

Edward Hayes scored 15 points to lead the Owls (7-9). Joseph Norwood added 12 points and Jarek Boyd closed with 11.

Ringgold 77, Boyd-Buchanan 52: In the tournament’s third-place game, the Tigers’ Deontae Jackson scored 12 of the team’s 28 first-quarter points to set the tempo. Jackson added two points before halftime and finished with 14 points.

Jordan Ransom led Ringgold with 17 points and Mac Brower got five of his 14 points in the first period.

Adam Mullinnax and Austin Jackson each scored eight points for the Bucs. Mullinax got all his points in the second quarter. Cooper Hodge added seven points in the fourth quarter.  

Ringgold is 8-2 on the season.

Scoring Summary

Championship Game

Baylor                                                                5 15 5 12 – 37

Hamilton Heights                                           19 24 22 5 – 70

Baylor (37) – Sneed 2, Wu, Brogdon 3, Austin Maize 9, Whaley, Seaberg 3, King 6, Taylor 2, Schock 7, Johnston, Urey 5.

Hamilton Heights (70) – Laing, Pitts 3, Joan Duran 10, Abdulhakim Ado 10, Chantha 7, Ezekiel Balogun 13, Strahinja Micakovic 10, Andelic 7, Olatunji, Adheke 5, Massengill 3, Abubakar 2.

3-Point Goals – Baylor 5 (Maize 3, Brogdon 1, Schock 1,), Hamilton Heights 7 (Duran 2, Micakovic 2, Pitts 1, Chantha 1, Adheke 1, Massengill 1).

All-Tournament Team

Hamilton Heights – Abdulhakim Ado (MVP), Ezekiel Balogun, Joan Duran; Baylor – Spencer King, Patrick Urey; Central – Ryan Montgomery; Brainerd – Jesse Walker; Notre Dame – Kealy Green; Ooltewah – Jarek Body; Ringgold – Jordan Ransom.

(E-mail Larry Fleming at larrfleming44@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @larryfleming44)