Bears earn district title shot

The Hustlin’ Tigers knocked off second-seed East Hamilton by 64-60, in Wednesday’s late game which dropped the Hurricanes into the consolation game with Ooltewah at 6 Saturday evening.

“We got off to a kind of lethargic start in the first half,” mentioned "Papa Bear" Zach Carpenter after the game. “We were not getting the angles on defense and just not playing the kind of ball that I wanted.

"In the second quarter we got back to playing our style.”

Bradley held a slim 7-4 lead midway through the opening quarter before junior All-District standout Ramerion Taylor scored a bucket as the Bears began to gain momentum and followed with a shot from "downtown" to make 12-6.

All-District senior Dee Reid chipped in with a basket before senior Alex Walker successfully jacked up back-to-back treys and suddenly the lead had grown to 20-6.

After posting a 22-10 edge by the first horn, Bradley outscored the visitors 24-6 in the second period, to carry a 46-16 advantage to the dressing room at halftime.

The second half was all Bears as they added to the advantage with a 29-12 second half bulge with a "mercy rule" continuous clock in the fourth quarter.

Taylor led all scorers with 24 points, drilling 10-of-12 shots from the field, including all four of his long-range bombs in just over 15 1/2 minutes of play.

All-District Jackson Ary, a 6-foot-7 senior, collected a dozen points, plus grabbed three rebounds, dished a trio of assists and blocked a shot.

After missing several weeks with an injury, Walker returned to early-season former with 10 points and four ricochets, plus found time to make a steal and dish out an assist.

District 6 Player of the Year Tyrese Stovall, a 6-foot-7 junior, continued to swipe loose balls from the backboard with seven caroms and helped out defensively with four steals. He padded his stat line with two "dimes" and rejected two Owl shots while scoring four points.

Senior point guard Jarrius Rogers, also an All-District honoree, handed out a half dozen helps and netted five points.

The Bears also got heavy support from non-starters, who added 27 points in Wednesday’s Bear victory.

Javian Hardaway led the Owls with eight points as the Bear defenders limited Ooltewah’s All-District selection, John Kusimy, to a single basket and two points.

The Bears won the battle of the boards 29-19, and shot 50% or better in each quarter, ending the game at 55.2% on 32-of-58 attempts, plus 9-for-20 from long-range.

The Owls shot a cool 37.1% for the game as they made 13-of-35 attempts and were shutout from downtown on six tries.

The visitors heard the foul whistle blow just five times against them relegating the Bears to just two free throws for the game, which were both converted in the second period.

Game Summary

District 6-4A

Tournament

Semifinals

Wednesday, Feb. 14

at Jim Smiddy Arena

Ooltewah                  10    6      8     4 — 28

Bradley Central        22    24   16   13 — 75

OWLS (28) — Javian Hardaway 8, Tyson Robinson 6, Gray 4, Horrse 4, Kusimy 2, Acklin 2, Marsh 2, Vincente, Haywood, Simmons, Wood.

BEARS (75) — Ramerion Taylor 24, Jackson Ary 11, Alex Walker 10, Rodney Williams 6, Jarrius Rogers 5, Reid 4, Stovall 4, Fields 3, Ballard 2, Brownlow 2, AJ Williams 2, Butts 2, An. Walker.

3-POINTERS: Ool 0; BC 9 (Taylor 4, Walker 2, Rogers, Ary, Fields).

FREE THROWS: Ool 2-of-6; BC 2-of-2.

SHOOTING: OHS 13-of-35 (37.1%); BC 32-of-58 (55.2%).

RECORDS: Ooltewah 3-18; Bradley Central (19-8).