The Lafayette Ramblers took home the AAA Region 6 title with a winover the Lakeview-FO Warriors, 77-51,-to cap off an undefeated regular season at 23-0.
In the girl’s game, the Lady Warriors defeated the Lady Ramblers handily, 67-26, to finish 24-1 and undefeated in league competition.
The boys' game featured an incredible back-and-forth affair throughout the entire first half. Within the first 16 minutes of game time, the Ramblers and Warriors had eight lead changes.
Lafayette’s Aiden Hadaway and Lakeview’s Brent Bowman—both with nine first quarter points—traded tough jump shots during the battle.
Following a scary fall by Bowman, the Ramblers would slowly gain momentum while the prolific scorer was out. Bowman would not return until the second half of the game.
Jayden Dover’s 3-pointer late in the second quarter pulled the Warriors within two points, but Lafayette’s Hadaway would answer with his own deep 3-pointer to add a cushion to their small lead, 36-31.
The Ramblers established an eight-point advantage after Junior Barber’s behind the head pass earned Lafayette an easy layup off a fast break, 41-33.
In the second half, the Ramblers' late first-half momentum would carry over. An eight-point lead steadily grew to 15 points after Junior Barber splashed home a 3-pointer from several feet behind the arc.
Restlessness and desperation grew for Lakeview as the team began to take riskier 3-point attempts—from a defender draped on them to leaning fadeaways—and this only benefited Lafayette.
Despite an impressive all-around effort by the Warriors’ Jamichael Davis, the duo of Hadaway and Barber was too much to handle in the closing quarters. The tag team would combined for 22 points in the third and fourth quarter, outscoring the Warriors themselves in the second half.
Following the game, Lafayette’s head coach Hank Peppers said,“I’m just proud of the boys. My enjoyment comes from seeing them have success in these moments,” said Peppers. “This level of competition drives me, drives the team, so the win makes it all the more enjoyable for us.”
The Ramblers’ leading scorers were Hadaway (27) and Barber (16). The two played throughout the entire game without a substitution.
“Junior (Barber) was playing great throughout the whole game, but his shot was half an inch off in the first half. He was half an inch from dropping 35 points,” said Peppers. “He is a special player, him and Aidan (Hadaway). Lakeview gave us their best shot in the first half, but we weathered the early storm, and we were able to do that tonight.”
The girls’ Warriors squad had zero problems handling the Lady Ramblers.
Lakeview would go on a 26-5 run to close out the first half, up 41-12. The last Lafayette bucket came with six minutes remaining in the second quarter. The Warriors held them to that sole free throw in the quarter.
Christina (21 points) and Christen Collins (19 points), sisters, would lead the Warriors in scoring. Behind them was point guard Angel Simmons with 15 points.
The defensive switches from zone to full court press and trap forced a multitude of turnovers by the Ramblers. Lakeview would capitalize and not rely on the 3-pointer, making 24 two-pointers compared to four 3-pointers.
The Lakeview girls' team, region champions, will compete in the NGAC AAA bracket for a state title. For the boys, both the Warriors and Ramblers will compete for the title. All roads lead through Lafayette, though, with their impressive record region championship.
GIRLS SUMMARY
LAKEVIEW-FO 20 19 19 9 – 67
LAFAYETTE 11 1 11 3 – 26
LAKEVIEW-FO (67) – Christina Collins 21, Christen Collins 19, Angel Simmons 15, Martin 6, Thompson 4, Alexander 2
LAFAYETTE (26) – Mykeria Johnson 13, Fanny Baker 6, Tucker 2, Barber 2, Michaela Baker 2, Mitchell 1.
3-POINT GOALS: Lakeview-FO 4 (Christen Collins 2, Christina Collins, Simmons); LAFAYETTE 2 (Johnson).
BOYS SUMMARY
LAKEVIEW-FO 18 15 12 6 – 51
LAFAYETTE 20 21 24 12 – 77
LAKEVIEW-FO (51) – Jamichael Davis 22, Brent Bowman 17, Dover 5, Walker 4, Burnett 3
LAFAYETTE (47) – Aidan Hadaway 27, Junior Barber 16, Jordan Kennedy 12, Barrett 9, Ramsey 9, Morris 4
3-POINT GOALS: LAKEVIEW-FO 4 (Dover, Bowman, Davis, Burnett); LAFAYETTE 6 (Hadaway 3, Barber, Ramsey, Barrett).