GAINESVILLE — After four straight blowout wins in the Lanierland finals, the Gainesville boys were expected to be pushed by a rising Cherokee Bluff team making its first-ever championship game appearance.
The Bears, who have only had their entire team together for five days, threw everything they had at the Red Elephants but in the end, Gainesville held on for a 75-70 win Wednesday night at the Gainesville gym.
It was Gainesville’s fifth straight tournament title, the longest streak for a boys team since East Hall won six straight from 2002 to 2007. It also matched the Red Elephants' most consecutive tournament wins since they won five straight from 1975 to 1979.
Cherokee Bluff led several times in the early moments, each time following a Corey Thomas basket. But an 8-0 run midway through the first quarter gave Gainesville a 17-10 lead they would never relinquish.
“Cherokee Bluff is a really good team and they gave us all we could handle,” Gainesville coach Chuck Graham said. “We expected a tough game and they gave us one. But our senior guys came up big.”
Bluff cut the lead to 20-15 moments later but the Red Elephants exploded for a 15-5 run and a 35-22 lead behind a dunk and a 3-pointer from Robert Reisman, who finished with 27 points and was named the Tournament Co-MVP along with Eli Pitts.
Bears coach Benjie Wood, who guided them to their first title game in just their third season, said there was nothing for his group to be dejected about despite the loss.
“We played hard but they’re a very experienced team and that played a big factor,” Wood said. “They made some really good basketball plays when they needed to. But I was very proud of how our guys competed, especially after getting down big in the first half.”
A Pitts dunk off an alley-oop pass from Jimmie Jackson pushed Gainesville’s lead to 40-25 late in the second quarter. But the Bears’ Shad Dabney drained a long 3-pointer and dished out two of his 8 assists to help Cherokee Bluff pull back within 44-37 by halftime.
The Bluff continued to chip away in the third quarter. The Bears climbed to within 53-49 on a Thomas 3-pointer and a layup off another Dabney assist. But Reisman scored six straight points to push the Red Elephants back up by 10 at 61-51.
Gainesville was able to maintain a near double-digit the rest of the way until the Bears closed out the game on an 8-3 run for the final score.
“Corey hurt us inside and then he stepped out a couple of times and hit a three,” Graham said. “But I thought we got control of the tempo and were able to maintain it. I think that was the difference.”
Pitts knocked down 14 points and had 5 assists for Gainesville. Dylan Bobga added 10 points and Ced Nicely 9 points for the Red Elephants.
Thomas poured in 26 points and 11 rebounds to pace Cherokee Bluff. Dre Raven had 20 points and Dabney finished with 9 points and 8 assists.
NORTH HALL 68,
CHESTATEE 62
North Hall used a 10-0 run to open the fourth quarter to erase a Chestatee lead and then pulled away for a win on Wednesday in the third-place game.
Chestatee the entire way until the fourth quarter. The War Eagles ran out to a 22-16 lead after the first quarter and a 3-pointer by Peyton Phillips gave them a 27-16 lead. Chestatee led 34-24 at halftime by as many as 10 in the third quarter.
But North Hall began to chip away late in the third climbing to within 48-44 heading into the final period. Corlin Sosebee drained the first of two 3-pointers to give the Trojans their first lead of the game at 50-48 to cap the big run.
The Trojans extended their lead to 61-55 but a basket by the War Eagles' Hugh Pruitt cut the lead to 61-59 with just under two minutes left. The Trojans answered that with a 6-0 run to put the game out of reach.
Cole Ellis led North Hall with 12 points. Clark Howell had 10 points and Robert Treyy 9 for the Trojans. Sosebee poured in 8, all in the fourth quarter, and Edward Doig also scored 8 for North Hall.
Chestatee was led by Pruitt, who poured in a game-high 17 points. Ethan Popham had 15 and Josh Bull 11 for the War Eagles.
LAKEVIEW ACADEMY 53
EAST HALL 47
Lakeview Academy used a big first quarter to grab the lead and then held off a furious second-half rally to beat the Vikings in the fifth-place game.
The Lion jumped out to a 19-9 lead after the opening period and increased their lead to 34-18 by halftime. Harrison Cooper and Conley Millwood led the charge pouring in 10 points apiece in the first half.
The Vikings chipped away in the second half trimming the lead 44-31 by the end of the third quarter and getting within five points twice in the fourth. But they could get no closer.
Cooper finished with a game-high 14 points to lead Lakeview Academy. Millwood had 12 points and Wesley Rigdon 10 for the Lions.
Imre Earls and Zio Cheeks had 8 points each to lead East Hall. Levi Holtzclaw added 7 points and Clete Cooper 6 points for the Vikings.
