In a battle of preseason district champion picks, Walker Valley and Bradley Central played virtually even for three quarters, but second-period run by the Mustangs gave them a 71-56 victory, Friday evening at Jim Smiddy Arena.
The Mustangs (8-1) are ranked seventh in the Maxpreps State Class 4A poll, while the Bears (7-2) are No. 17.
Back-to-back TSSAA State Girls Champion Bradley showed why they are ranked No. 7 (On3.com) and 12th (Maxpreps) nationally, by sizzlin' the nylon for the game's first 45 points on its way to an 80-25 victory.
MUSTANGS 71
BEARS 56
After five lead changes and four ties in the opening eight minutes, Walker Valley held a slim 15-13 edge at the buzzer after a late 3-pointer by sophomore Zach Davis.
Coming after the short break, The Mustangs exploded for the first 11 points of the second period, including three straight long-range bombs by senior Landon Shirk, Davis and junior Turner Clayton.
Junior Ashton Davis capped the run with a driving bucket from the lane before the host finally found the bottom of the net on a free throw by senior Caiden Bauldwin with 3:25 left on the opening half clock.
After the teams traded a pair of baskets, the younger Davis brother dropped in the final three shots for the visitors, including another 3-ball, an offensive rebound putback and a baseline drive for a 15-point (38-23) halftime edge.
Walker Valley drained 9-of-16 shots from the field in the period, including five from long distance.
The Stallions kept up the pressure after the intermission pushing their advantage to as much as 18 points before Bradley was able trim the deficit to a dozen with an 11-5 streak, including hitting 5-of-6 free throws in the final minute.
Just before the third buzzer, the elder Davis banked in a 3-ball from the wing to push the difference back to 15 points.
Bradley rallied with a 9-1 spurt to open the final frame, closing the gap to just seven points (56-49), but once again the Herd answered with a 7-2 streak.
The hosts once again battled back to make it a single-digit difference (64-56) but the game's final eight points went to the visitor's side of the scoreboard.
The Davis brothers paced the victory with Zach netting 21 points, including a trio of treys, plus he pulled down four rebounds, dished a pair of assists and copped a couple of thefts.
Ashton drained a duo of triples on his way to 16 markers, cleared eight caroms, swiped three steals and handed out a pair of "dimes."
Senior Graham Campbell added 13 points with a pair of 3-balls, two ricochets and a couple of helps, while Shirk had a trio of triples on his way to 11 markers, five thefts and a couple of caroms.
As a team, the Mustangs finished the night sinking 11-of-21 (52.4%) from beyond the arc, but only 14-for-33 (42.4%) in front of it.
The Herd also connected only 10-of-16 (62.5%) at the free throw line.
Bradley was just 14-for-31 (45.2%) from close range and only 2-of-11 (18.2%) from distance, but did make 22-of-29 (75.9%) foul shots.
The Bears held a slim 31-28 edge in the backboard battle, but lost the turnover twist by a 23-18 margin.
In his first "County Conflict," Bauldwin led all scorers with 22 points, including 7--for-8 at the stripe, plus the 6-foot-5 senior snagged seven caroms and had a trio of thefts.
Senior Ramerion Taylor collected 14 points, four ricochets, two assists and a couple of steals.
All-state Tyrese Stovall helped out with a dozen points and seven boards, plus a pair of thefts and two "swats."
Junior Andrew Walker went 3-of-5 from the field for eight points, plus he also cleaned the glass for seven rebounds, and swiped three steals.
BEARETTES 80
LADY MUSTANGS 25
Bradley's stifling defense swiped the ball 11 times and allowed Walker Valley to get off just four shots, while the offense made 16-of-21 shots in the opening 34-0 run before the first horn.
The Lady Mustangs couldn't find the nylon until their 11th attempt as senior Maliyah Woods finally put back in an offensive rebound with just 2:50 left in the second frame.
Although the teams did trade baskets the rest of the way, the damage was done as the hosts carried a 52-6 advantage into the locker rooms at the intermission.
With none of Coach Jason Reuter's starters getting on the court in the second half, the Bearette reserves got plenty of playing time and continued to stretch the lead out scoring the Fillies 25-19 in 16 minutes, including a "running clock" final frame.
Returning to the lineup after sitting out Tuesday's blowout in Ooltewah, 2024 Miss Tennessee Basketball finalist Kimora Fields led the victory with 18 points, hitting 9-of-11 shots, and copping five steals in just a little over 14 minutes of playing time.
Getting a chance to shine, sophomore guard Hallie Rymer put in a career-high 12 points, going 4-for-4 inside the lane, plus drilling a long ball, while playing the entire second half.
Samford signee Avary Brewer helped out with 10 markers, including a pair of triples, plus had two rebounds, a pair of assists and a couple of thefts.
Arkansas signee Harmonie Ware added nine points, a trio of thefts, two boards and two helps to the winning tally.
Bradley also got a second straight strong showing off the bench by 5-foot-11 sophomore Jada Francis, dropping 4-of-5 shots for eight markers, plus clearing a team-high seven caroms to go with two steals and a pair of "dimes."
Kennesaw State signee Tatianna Stovall played less than 10 minutes and garnered a half dozen points and five ricochets, while Walters State signee Malia Wilcox dropped in seven markers, handed out four helps and swiped a trio of thefts.
Woods topped the Walker Valley effort with 13 points, netting 6-of-7 shots, to go with three steals and a pair fo rebounds.
Junior Lyla Sims helped out with nine points, while sophomore Kia Young had four points and pulled down five boards.
Game Summaries
Friday, Dec. 13
at Jim Smiddy Arena
Girls Game
Walker Valley 0 6 10 9 — 25
Bradley Central 34 18 13 15 — 80
LADY MUSTANGS (25) — Maliyah Woods 13, Lyla Sims 6, Young 4, K. McDonald 2,M. McDonald, Argauer, Lindsey, Trew, Hernandez, Jones, Holt.
BEARETTES (80) — Kimora Fields 18, Hallie Rymer 12, Avary Brewer 10, Harmonie Ware 9, Jada Francis 8, Malia Wilcox 7, Tatianna Stovall 6, Love Howard 5, Osborn 4, Broome 1, Stewart, Schultz.
3-POINTERS: WV none: BC 5 (Brewer 2, Rymer, Ware, Wilcox).
FREE THROWS: WV 3-of-7: BC 5-of-11.
RECORDS: Walker Valley 2-8: No. 1 Bradley Central 8-0.
Boys Game
Walker Valley 15 23 17 16 — 71
Bradley Central 13 10 17 16 — 56
MUSTANGS (71) — Zach Davis 21, Ashton Davis 16, Graham Campbell 13, Landon Shirk 11, Turner Clayton 7, T. Campbell 2, Green 1, Keeton, Sausville, Coates, Bain.
BEARS (56) — Caiden Bauldwin 22, Ramerion Taylor 14, Tyrese Stovall 12, Andrew Walker 8, Fields, Cannon, Ary, Goldston, Butts.
3-POINTERS: WV 11 (Z. Davis 3, Shirk 3, A. Davis 2, G. Campbell 2, Clayton): BC 2 (Walker, Bauldwin).
FREE THROWS: WV 11-of-21: BC 22-of-29.
RECORDS: No. 7 Walker Valley 9-1: No. 17 Bradley Central 7-2.