Lawrence Central handled Lafayette Jeff and SIlver Creek to win the 2019 Raymond James Hall of Fame Classic. (Pictured: Dre Davis)
The Bears jumped on Silver Creek early in the title game and cruised to a 63-31 victory. Dre Davis earned the tournament's MVP honors. He was key in containing Trey Kaufman and Kooper Jacobi while providing a scoring punch of his own.
Lafayette Jeff defeated Heritage Hills in the third place game. Avery Beaver scored 25 points in the win.
Earlier in the day, the event got off to a strong start with Silver Creek and Heritage Hills going to overtime. Heritage Hills dominated the offensive glass to build a second-half lead. Murray Becher and Blake Sisley were a force on the glass.
Trey Kaufman was excellent from start to finish. He displayed his shooting ability by going 3-9 from the three-point line.
Branden Northern took over the game late in regulation. He hit a three-pointer to make it a four-point game with just over two minutes to go. A minute later, Northern hit another three to cutt Silver Creek's deficit to three points.
Heritage Hills had kept SC at bay thanks to free throw shooting down the stretch. HH finally missed one and Northern finished in the lane to make it a one-point game. With Silver Creek pressing, Kaufman intercepted a pass in the back court and was fouled with 13 seconds remaining.
Kaufman missed the front end of the one plus one. After HH missed both free throws, SC set up Kaufman to attack off the dribble. Sisley tried to pick Kaufman's pocket but was called for a foul. This time it was a two-shot bonus. Kaufman, an excellent free throw shooter, again missed the first free throw. Despite the pressure and missing two in a row, he sank the second to tie the game.
Simon Scherry had a decent look to win the game, but it was off the mark.
In overtime, Kaufman and Northern dominated. Kaufman scored six points in the extra frame to finish with 32 points. Northern also scored six points in overtime. HH was down seven before Scherry scored and Sisley drilled a three-pointer to make it a two-point game. But Silver Creek converted free throws from there.
Kaufman had 32 points and 12 rebounds. Northern recorded 19 points and five assists. Nolan Gilbert tallied 11 points and six rebounds. Isaac Hinton added seven. Kooper Jacobi ended with six points and six rebounds.
Sisley led HH with 24 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists. Murray Becher ended with 17 points and eight rebounds. Scherry added 16 points and four assists. Jake Johnson had 11 points and nine rebounds.
Jeff came out hot against LC. The Bronchos hit three three-pointers in the first four minutes of the game to take an early lead. Brooks Barnhizer had a great game from the tip. He scored the first five points for Jeff. Nijel Pack found similar success for LC in the opening quarter. He scored five quick points as well.
After trailing by two after the first period, Pack scored the first five points of the second to give LC the lead. Jeff came back to tie the game a couple of times, but Jeff never held the lead after that point. Pack, Dre Davis, and Jasen Graves helped LC outscored Jeff 23-14 in the second period.
Brooks Barnhizer kept Jeff close in the third quarter as he scored all over the floor, but LC had too much firepower. The Bears pulled away in the fourth with Davis scoring eight points in the stanza.
LC won going away, 78-60.
Dre Davis had 21 points and nine rebounds. Nijel Pack finished with 18 points, seven assists, and six rebounds. Tae Davis and Greg Jenkins each recorded 11 points. Jasen Graves had eight.
Brooks Barnhizer had 30 points on 9-15 shooting. He also had nine rebounds. Braxton Barnhizer had 13 points and seven rebounds but was only 4-16 from the field.