WRCBtv.com | Chattanooga News, Weather & SportsBradley Central, Brainerd win district boys titles

Bradley Central holds off Ooltewah for 5-AAA title
CLEVELAND, Tenn. (WRCB) -- Bryce Copeland scored 21 points and Bradley Central survived Ooltewah's furious fourth-quarter rally to win the District 5-AAA tournament championship with a 64-58 win at Jim Smiddy Arena on Tuesday night.

Both teams advance to host regional quarterfinal games this weekend. The Bears will welcome Coffee County while the Owls face White County on Saturday night. Both games start at 7 p.m. ET.

The Owls, who finished a half-game ahead of the Bears for the regular season crown, trailed 50-36 in the final minute of the third quarter before Jacqueze Robinson sparked a rally.

Robinson scored ten of his 13 points in the fourth quarter as part of a 22-8 run that erased the double-digit deficit. Mikhail Creech capped the rally with a layup that tied the game at 58-all with just more than two minutes to play.

The Bears had one last punch in them, responding with a driving layup by Copeland. After an Owls' turnover, he finished it off at the free throw line as Bradley Central scored the game's final six points to secure the win.

Mile Morgan had 12 points and Justin Houston finished with 10 to join Copeland in double figures.

Creech led the Owls with 15 points and Antonio Jackson added 12.

McMinn County topped Cleveland 60-53 in the consolation game. The Cherokees will travel to Cumberland on Saturday night, while the Blue Raiders will visit Cookeville.

Kitchens' heroics lift Brainerd over East Ridge in 6-AA final
CHATTANOOGA (WRCB) -- Demetrius Kitchens should have never been in a position to be the hero Tuesday night.

But he relished the role nonetheless.

After watching East Ridge rally from a 19-point second-half deficit, Kitchens hit the game-winning lay-up in the closing seconds to lift Brainerd to a 63-62 win in the District 6-AA final at High-Smith Gymnasium.

The Panthers earns a home date with Meigs County in the Region 3 quarterfinals, while the Pioneers will host McMinn Central. Both games are scheduled for 7 p.m. ET tips on Saturday night.

The Panthers built a 44-25 lead in the last few minutes of the third quarter before the Pioneers caught fire from the outside. Chris Green erupted for 18 points in the final frame, fueling an East Ridge rally that finally knotted the game at 56-all.

Eddie Hitchock's 3-pointer with 12 seconds to play gave the Pioneers a 62-61 lead, their first since a 14-11 advantage at the end of the first quarter, but Kitchens got the last laugh. He sliced through the middle of the defense for an uncontested finger-roll lay-up that dropped through as the final seconds ticked off the clock.

Howard topped Tyner by one point in the consolation game on Monday night. The Hustlin' Tigers will travel to Sequoyah on Saturday night in regional play, while the Rams will visit 5-AA tourney champ Polk County.

Big second-half pushes East Hamilton to 6-AA girls title
CHATTANOOGA (WRCB) -- Brainerd's loss proved to be East Hamilton's gain.

The Lady Panthers finished unbeaten in district 6-AA play during the regular season, but were banned from the postseason after a post-game fight with rival Howard in last year's tournament.

Runner-up East Hamilton garnered the tourney's top-seed as a result, and made the most of it by capping a title run with a 48-35 win over Red Bank in the championship game on Tuesday night.

Tied at 17 at the half, the Lady Hurricanes hit back-to-back 3-pointers to open the third quarter before using a 14-2 run to push the lead to double figures, where it remained the rest of the way.

Tiffany Lewis scored 14 points to lead East Hamilton, who will Polk County in Friday night's regional quarterfinals at 7 p.m. ET. Red Bank will host Meigs County the same night.

Red Bank's MiShannon Wilbanks led all scorers with 24 points.

Other high school scores from Tuesday night:

Boys Basketball
Lookout Valley 46, Van Buren 42 (District 6-A Championship)
Sale Creek 58, South Pittsburg 47 (District 6-A Consolation)
Polk County 43, Sequoyah 42 (District 5-AA Championship)
McMinn County 60, Cleveland 53 (District 5-AAA Consolation)
Gordon Lee 62, Commerce 50 (Georgia Class A State Playoff Preliminary)