BULLDOGS WIN! Advance to 2A state championship
By Daniel Schmidt
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
LAFAYETTE — When the going got tough against Red Bay High School, the LaFayette High School boys’ basketball team knew it would have to lean on its mental toughness and preparation at some point.
In a fourth quarter that saw neither team lead by more than three points, the Bulldogs’ championship pedigree was perhaps tested more than any other point this season.
Despite a late deficit, No. 8 LHS (27-7) overcame the No. 3 Tigers (26-6) 34-32 in an instant-classic 2A state semifinal game on March 2 after Cameron Thomas nailed a daring layup with five seconds left.
It is the seventh time the Bulldogs have reached a boys’ basketball state championship game in school history, and the first time since 2015. LHS is 4-2 in those previous six title matches.
After the game, Bulldogs head coach Chase Lewis said his team’s attention to detail during game scenarios at practice made all the difference, particularly in the final two possessions.
“These guys just don’t break, they cannot be broken,” Lewis said. “We’re just a family unit, and nobody cares about the shine. Everybody wants to win as a team, so everybody’s willing to sacrifice anything for the team. That’s what makes this unit special to me. We can block out all the noise.”
It was a familiar stage for LHS under Lewis. Two years ago, his team swaggered into the same venue, where it lost 56-51 to state runner-up Highland Home High School in the state semifinals. This time, they made sure not to feel that same feeling again.
“As teachers and coaches, we get to come back every year, but for our guys, they get about four years to do this,” Lewis said. “For our seniors, I was going to make sure their last year was special, so I just thank God for giving my boys this opportunity to be here.”
While his last-second basket and free throw ultimately won the game, Thomas was crucial in almost every other aspect, finishing as LHS’ leading rebounder despite being a guard. He said that aggressive mentality was only possible due to the support his teammates and coaching staff gave each other.
“All of my coaches wanted me to keep driving the entire game because that wasn’t what I was doing in the third quarter. I saw the lane and took it,” Thomas said. “It takes everybody to keep everybody else’s arm around them, because if you get too frustrated during the moment, you’re not going to win the game, no matter what happens.”
The Bulldogs got off to a dream start after Kemare Harrington scored the first five points of the game off two RBHS turnovers, including a crucial second-chance three-pointer. Although the shots dried up toward the end of the first quarter, an impressive team performance on the defensive glass powered LHS to a 9-4 lead.
Within the second quarter’s first three minutes, it appeared the Bulldogs would build a large halftime lead after unselfish passing and constant movement put them up by 10 points. However, the Tigers made a late run to close the gap, and LHS escaped to the locker room up 16-11.
Following halftime, RBHS evened the score by the four-minute mark after forcing the ball into the paint and converting most of their jump shots. During that time, the Bulldogs’ recurring third-quarter struggles surfaced, and they went into the fourth quarter down 26-23 despite crucial buckets in the paint from Jayden Thomason and Ty’Kaden Williams.
That set the scene for a tense atmosphere, which the Bulldogs took head on by fearlessly driving into the paint and finishing at the rim in a back-and-forth battle. Eventually, LHS found themselves down 32-31 with 19 seconds standing between them and either a championship berth or elimination.
Following Lewis’s timeout, Thomas grabbed the ball from Williams on a pick-and-roll play, cut into the paint, and finished at the rim all while being grabbed from behind. His successful free throw then gave the Bulldogs a two-point lead before the Tigers’ half-court shot bounced off the backboard just to the right of the rim.
Harrington tied as the game’s leading scorer with 10 points for LHS, while Thomas and Thomason finished with nine points apiece. Bryant Harris was the game’s other leading scorer with 10 points for RBHS.
The Bulldogs will face either No. 2 Providence Christian (30-5) or No. 4 Section High School (24-10) in the boys’ 2A state championship. That game will take place on Friday, March 6 at 10:45 a.m. at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, which is located at 1001 N. 19th St.
The Bulldogs will face No. 4 Section High School (25-10) in the boys’ 2A state championship game after the Lions defeated No. 2 Providence Christian (30-6) 61-58 in the other semifinal game.
That game will take place on Friday, March 6 at 10:45 a.m. at the Legacy Arena in Birmingham, which is located at 1001 N. 19th St.
LHS and SHS share no common regular-season opponents.
