GAINESVILLE - With second place in Region 7-AAA South on the line, both the Gainesville and Johnson boys basketball teams rose to the occassion Friday night.
But in the end, Class AAA No. 5 Gainesville held off a furious rally by the 14th-ranked Knights in a 69-65 win.
"I thought both teams played well and hit some big shots at the end. It was a good game to watch," Gainesville coach Jerry Davis said.
The Knights (13-11, 4-4) whittled away at a big halftime Gainesville lead in the third and eventually tied the game at 55-55 on an A.J. Young layup.
But Gainesville answered with a 8-0 run sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers from Brent Benson and Jeremy Little and Johnson could never get closer.
Benson finished with a game-high 29 points and Little had 16. Benji Cobb added 10 for the Elephants.
Johnson was led by Tarik Smith with 21 points. Sam Greavu was held to just 16 while Young and Jeremy Matthews each had 14 for the Knights.
The Elephants (20-6, 5-3) opened the game with a 19-8 first quarter and led 34-23 at halftime.
Sunday
July 6th, 2025
8:53AM
