Tuesday’s Region 3-A boys’ basketball tournament opener at Arts & Sciences didn't have the look or feel of a typical one vs. four quarterfinal matchup.
Lookout Valley made sure of that.
The Yellow Jackets, seeded fourth out of District 6, battled Arts & Sciences down to the wire before ending their season with a 68-62 loss to the District 5 champions.
“I think they played a great game,” CSAS coach Mark Dragoo said of his opponents.
“They made some great shots. They were ready to play, and they can leave this game knowing they gave it everything they had.”
Each team hit two first-quarter 3-pointers as they traded leads until the Patriots pulled to a 16-14 advantage at the end of the period. After Miguel Hamilton opened the second with a 3 for CSAS, Lookout Valley used a 7-0 run to take a 23-19 lead.
Arts & Sciences spent the rest of the quarter playing from behind until a 3 from Josh Carter in the final seconds put his team up 35-33 at the break.
Another 3 from Carter, and one from Darius Graves, helped CSAS build a 10-point lead in the third quarter, but the Yellow Jackets weren’t ready to quit. They got within 49-46 on William Ball’s steal and assist to Darrion Robinson, who finished with a game-high 22 points.
Lookout Valley trailed by four heading into the final period and quickly cut the deficit to one on Larry McCullough’s 3-pointer before Shunn Moorer responded with a 3 for the Patriots. The Yellow Jackets missed several opportunities to further cut the CSAS lead, but were still within four points with 42 seconds left to play.
Knowing a Lookout Valley comeback would mean an end to their careers, Dragoo credited his senior leaders with making the plays the Patriots needed to keep their season alive.
“I think our seniors wanted to continue to play,” he said.
In the final 36 seconds, Graves connected twice from the free-throw line, Moorer tipped in a third-chance shot, and Todd Lansden came down with a crucial rebound to secure the 68-62 victory.
Moorer led the Patriots with a team-high 17 points, while Carter followed with 15. Lansden finished with 14 for CSAS, despite being a focal point for the Lookout Valley defense.
“There was some frustration,” Dragoo said. “Todd did a really good job, but he’s never had four people guarding him before. That was their decision, that they weren’t going to let him score. That’s hard for the guards who are trying to get him the ball, and hard for him to know that he’s working hard but not getting the ball. I told him to take it as a compliment.”
The win puts Arts & Sciences into the region semifinals, scheduled for Wednesday at South Pittsburg High School. Weather permitting, the Patriots would play at 6 p.m. Eastern against Silverdale Baptist, which upset Sale Creek 55-51 in its quarterfinal Tuesday.
CSAS will be looking to avenge a 57-43 loss to the Seahawks in the teams’ last meeting.
“They beat us the last time we played them,” Dragoo said, “so we’ve got a lot to get ready for.”
(E-mail Jaime Barrett at jaimenbarrett@gmail.com)
Region 3-A boys quarterfinal
At Arts & Sciences
ARTS & SCIENCES 68, LOOKOUT VALLEY 62
Lookout Valley 14 19 16 13 -- 62
Arts & Sciences 16 19 18 15 -- 68
Lookout Valley (62) -- Darrion Robinson 22, William Ball 13, Larry McCullough 12, Dixon, Terry Billingsley 11, Stansfer 2, Daniel 2.
Arts & Sciences (68) -- Josh Carter 15, Shunn Moorer 17, Alford, Hamilton 5, Brown 4, Graves 9, Dodds 4, Todd Lansden 14, Fuller.
3-point goals: Lookout Valley 7 (Robinson 3, McCullough 2, Ball, Billingsley); Arts & Sciences 8 (Carter 3, Moorer 3, Hamilton, Graves).