One top seed fell.
Another No. 1 seed made it clear that chip on its collective shoulder is huge.
Two other games were decided by a total of 10 points, and Kendrick Thompson went off for a career-tying 35 points.
In other words, it was just another day at the office in the District 5-AAA basketball tournament at East Hamilton High School on Semifinal Saturday.
Walker Valley’s No. 4 seed Mustangs led from wire-to-wire in upsetting No. 1 Bradley Central, 71-59.
Bradley Central demolished rival Cleveland, 63-28, and University of Florida signee Brooke Copeland, who scored a game-high 20 points, hinted the No. 1 Bearettes weren’t through with their making-a-statement tourney.
Thompson, hitting the 35-point mark for the third time this season, proved too much for second-seed Ooltewah to handle and the No. 3 Blue Raiders held on for a 67-60 victory over the Owls, who had all five starters battling flu-like symptoms.
Second-seed McMinn County battled back from an early double-digit deficit to knock off No. 3 Walker Valley, 60-57, behind KeKe Smith’s clutch performance despite being saddled with four fouls for most of the second half.
On Monday, the Bearettes (21-5) tangle with the Lady Cherokees (11-16) at 7:30 for the girls’ championship. At 6 p.m., Cleveland (13-13) plays Walker Valley (18-11) in the consolation game.
Then, defending champion Walker Valley (20-9) will play Cleveland (17-7) for the boys’ title at 7:30 p.m., right after Bradley Central (14-11) plays Ooltewah (15-10) for third place at 6 p.m.
Saturday’s winners assured themselves of hosting a first-round Region 3-AAA game while the loser’s will hit the road to face the District 6-AAA champion and runner-up.
Walker Valley boys 71, Bradley Central 59: This time the two county rivals went against the grain. During the regular season, the Bears squeaked out a pair of two-point, buzzer-beating wins over the Mustangs.
“We wanted this game real bad,” said Brandon Crews, one of five senior starters for the Mustangs. “We got a little revenge for those buzzer-beaters they got. It meant the world for us to get another chance to play Bradley.”
Walker Valley got off to a 12-3 start and had a 27-17 lead when Dustin Swafford was flagged for a technical foul. The Bears trimmed the deficit to 27-21, but had the potential to score six points on the one possession, but settled for four by hitting 4 of 6 free throws.
When Daniel Clark hit a 3 from the left corner to pull the Bears to within 32-29 starting the third period, the Mustangs answered with an Austin Harwood 3 and fastbreak layup by Crews to extend the lead to 37-29.
“We answered all their runs,” Walker Valley coach Bob Williams said. “We’ve been in a lot of close games and we learned a lot from them.”
The Bears closed the gap to 47-43 on Cole Copeland’s 3 from the wing, but Walker Valley sophomore Jacob Herd answered with a 3 to close the third quarter. After Dee Crisp made two free throws to open the final period, Herd answered them with a 3 from the right corner.
Walker Valley pushed the lead to 59-45 when Austin Harwood drove the lane for a layup and freshman Bryce Nunnelly converted a steal into a layup and got another lay-in 24 seconds later.
The Mustangs were home free.
“This is one time being the number one seed with a bye didn’t work to our advantage,” Bradley Central coach Chuck Clark said. “Everyone has been off, but they got some rust off by playing last night and we looked like we hadn’t played in four or five days. We just got beat.”
Crews, who had 30 points against Soddy-Daisy on Friday, led the Mustangs’ balanced attack with 13 on Saturday. Lukas Korn had 12 points, Harwood 11 and Nunnelly 10.
Taylor Bentley paced Bradley Central with 19 points and Logan Cox had 13.
Bradley Central girls 63, Cleveland 28: The Bearettes shellacked the Lady Raiders again after sweeping two games during the season by a combined 45 points.
“The girls were very focused tonight,” Bradley coach Jason Reuter said. “I don’t mean this as any disrespect toward Cleveland, but once we got the lead to 7-0 I knew the game was over. We’re the better team; we’re bigger, more experienced.”
Bradley was up 22-3 with 1:49 left in the first quarter. Cleveland trimmed that deficit to 22-13 when Bre Ware scored eight of Cleveland’s next 10 points.
That just got Bradley’s dander up.
The Bearettes went on a 21-2 run and opened an insurmountable 43-15 lead with 5:36 left in the third quarter.
“The time off (due to snow) gave us some rest that we needed,” Copeland said.
Then, the 6-foot-2-inch post explained the team’s motivation for this tournament.
“We have a huge chip on our shoulder,” she said, “because people are disrespecting us. We only got two girls on the all-district team (which will be announced after Monday’s games). That’s ridiculous. Two other teams have three players on that team. We should have three or four more make it.
“And in my four years here we’ve dominated the district and coach Reuter has never won the coach of the year award. That’s crazy.”
Copeland also pulled down eight rebounds and blocked two shots. Her “Twin Tower” teammate, 6-2 Rebecca Reuter, scored 14 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked four shots. Emma Kate Brown scored 10 points.
Bradley out-rebounded the Lady Blue Raiders 38-30, hit 5 of 14 3-pointers and shot 48 percent from the field. The Bearettes also made 14 of 15 free throws.
“This team has a chance to be the best free throw shooting team I’ve ever coached,” Reuter said. “Free throw shooting and rebounding is why we’re winning.”
Ware led Cleveland with 13 points.
Cleveland boys 67, Ooltewah 60: The Blue Raiders got a monster game from the 6-1 Thompson, who is making the most of his senior season. He had 16 points – and two of his three 3-pointers – at halftime and the game was tied at 29-all.
Thompson started the third period with a 3 and then converted a steal into a fastbreak layup to give Cleveland a 34-29 advantage.
“I played pretty good tonight,” Thompson said. “I’m just praying for this team to win the district championship, something we haven’t done in my four years at Cleveland.”
Cleveland slowed the game tempo to a crawl most of the second half, the lulls being punctuated by Thompson dribbling near mid-court and then blasting past Ooltewah defenders for layups or passes that set up teammates for easy scores.
With the Blue Raiders up by 50-42, TyQwon Ware fouled Ooltewah’s Jarek Boyd and then picked up a technical foul with 5:56 left in the game. The Owls had a possession potentially worth up to seven points. They only got two – Ben Snider free throws – because Boyd went 0-for-4 from the line.
That’s when Cleveland went strictly to a spread offense, similar to the four-corner stall.
Thompson always had the ball, dribbling under slight pressure by the Owls, who feared him blasting past them into the lane, creating havoc for the defenders.
Thompson scored four points. Isaiah Beaty made two baskets, Jake Gibson and Cantrel Ware each canned two free throws and then Thompson drove the lane for a bucket and got two free throws after being fouled as the Blue Raiders denied the Owls a spot in the title game.
“Kendrick wears a lot of different hats for us,” Cleveland coach Jason McCowan said. “He handles the ball, he scores, rebounds and gets assists. And he’s calm, composed, a good senior leader and manages a lot of puppies (young players) we have out there.
“When we got up by seven points, I wanted him to stay near the center circle and spread Ooltewah out. They could either stay in a zone or guard us and we could get them in further foul trouble. If we got around them, I knew Kendrick could finish or make some free throws.”
Ooltewah coach Andre Montgomery, like all other district coaches, knows what to expect from Thompson.
“He’s a really good player,” he said. “He shoots it, he handles it and he makes it tough on your defense. But some other guys got some hustle points for them tonight, too.”
Montgomery said all five of his starters – Snider, Jaymcal Johnson, Ron King, Jarek Boyd and Edward Montgomery – played with flu-like symptoms and Snider was seen momentarily hovering over a trash can in the early going.
“But that’s not an excuse,” the coach said. “You have to play through that. We got down but we stayed in the game, although we were struggling most of the night.”
Cantrel Ware was the only other Blue Raider in double figures with 10.
Snider did fight through his illness and led the Owls with 21 points, only eight coming in the second half when he had four fouls. The Owls had three players foul out – Johnson, Boyd and Montgomery.
Johnson finished with 13 points and King scored 12.
McMinn County girls 60, Walker Valley 57: The Lady Mustangs zipped into a 20-6 lead, but McMinn County coach Tim McPhail, during a timeout, was telling his players, “We’re all right. We’re all right.”
They were.
Trailing 30-17, the Lady Cherokees went on an 18-2 run – keyed by KeKe Smith’s eight points, including two 3s – and gained their first lead at 35-32 early in the third quarter.
“That sure wasn’t the start we expected,” McPhail said. “They made a lot of shots, but there was nothing much for us. That first run got us back in the game, but Walker Valley came right back and got a 10-point lead.”
Smith, who scored a team-high 18 points, hit a pair of 3s and Rachel Burke drained a 3 from the wing and added a putback of an errant Smith shot to pull the Lady Cherokees to within 54-53 with 5:05 left.
When Smith nailed her first 3 in the fourth period, she had just come off the bench from sitting with four fouls.
Ebony Kelley’s putback after another Smith miss gave McMinn County its second lead of the game at 55-54. Burke hit three free throws and Shelby Wilson added two as the Lady Cherokees held on for the win.
McPhail called Smith the team’s “backbone.”
“It was frustrating having to sit out with four fouls,” said Smith, a three-year starter. “But I knew my teammates would step up. When I got back out there I had to step up by getting them some open shots.
“We’ve got to win the district because McMinn hasn’t won it in 11 years. We’re hungry.”
Burke and Rachel Simbeck each scored 13 points for the Lady Cherokees.
Kathleen Alomar led Walker Valley with 19 points and Lindsey Macon tossed in 10.
SUMMARIES
BOYS
Cleveland 12 17 17 21 – 67
Ooltewah 15 14 10 21 – 60
Cleveland (67) – T. Ware 5, Cantrel Ware 12, Tatum, Kendrick Thompson 35, Beaty 4, Brown 2, Vecchio 2, Gibson 7, McRee.
Ooltewah (60) – Jaymcal Johnson 13, Boyd 3, Ron King 12, Ben Snider 21, Montgomery 6, Ross 3, Freeman 2, Jones
3-Point Goals – Cleveland 4 (Thompson 3, T. Ware), Ooltewah 5 (Johnson 3, King, Ross).
Walker Valley 14 18 18 21 – 71
Bradley Central 6 20 17 16 – 59
Walker Valley (71) – Bryce Nunnelly 10, Conway, Austin Hardwood 11, Jones 2, L. Melton 5, Herd 8, B. Swafford, Lukas Korn 12, Morrow 2, Williams, Brandon Crews 13, D. Swafford 6, Montgomery, C. Melton 2.
Bradley Central (59) – McGowan, Clark 8, Copeland 9, Maroon, Crisp 3, Taylor Bentley 19, McCurdy 6, Gregory, Logan Cox 13, Morgan 1, Pitner.
3-Point Goals – Walker Valley 5 (B. Swafford 2, Crews 2, Harwood), Bradley Central 8 (Cox 3, Clark 2, Bentley 2, Copeland).
GIRLS
Walker Valley 20 12 15 10 – 57
McMinn County 8 19 15 18 – 60
Walker Valley (57) – Jones 8, Cox, Lindsey Macon 10, Spann 2, Jaclyn Griffith, Kathleen Alomar 19, Davis, Mowery 6.
McMinn County (60) – Wilson 8, Rachel Simbeck 13, Rachel Burke 13, Dispensa 2, Kelley 6, Thompson, KeKe Smith 18.
3-Point Goals – Walker Valley 7 (Griffith 3, Jones 2, Alomar 2), McMinn County 8 (Smith 4, Simbeck 2, Burke 2).
Cleveland 9 6 7 6 – 28
Bradley Central 22 16 11 14 – 63
Cleveland (28) – Berry, Bre Ware 13, Scoggins 7, Buckner, Barton, Crump, Walkup 3, Phillips, Person 2, McClendon 2.
Bradley Central (63) – Hughes 6, Davis 2, Brown, Emma Kate Brown 10, Gaither 1, Stallings 6, Brooke Copeland 20, Delane, Summars, Rebecca Reuter 14, Brumfiel 2, McRee 2.
3-Point Goals – Cleveland 1 (Ware), Bradley Central 5 (Brown 2, Stallings 2, Copeland).
Monday’s Schedule
Girls Consolation – Cleveland vs. Walker Valley, 6 p.m.
Girls Championship – Bradley County vs. McMinn County, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s Schedule
Boys Consolation – Ooltewah vs. Bradley Central, 6 p.m.
Boys Championship – Walker Valley vs. Cleveland, 7:30 p.m.
(E-mail Larry Fleming at larryfleming44@gmail.com)
photo by Greg Davick