B

The Rutledge girls and East Ridge boys both built big leads and held off last minute comebacks on Tuesday evening to take home the Middle School Basketball Championships.

In the girls championship, Rutledge took down West View, 46-35. On the boys side, East Ridge held on for a 48-43 victory over Maury.

In the third place games, Maury girls overcame an early deficit to take down Jefferson Middle 45-37 while the Lincoln Heights boys defeated West View 46-31.

Three score in double figures to lead East Ridge past Maury

East Ridge built a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter against Maury on Tuesday night and then held off a furious comeback to secure the championship, 48-43.

Maury had the lead down to four with two minutes to go but, following a timeout, East Ridge regrouped and closed the win out.

Braden Smith led the way for East Ridge with 14 points while Keegan Covington and Aaron Carpenter each added 10 points. Other scorers for East Ridge were Colton Cobble with five, Brett Smith with five, Peyton Holt with three and Dylan Maltba with one.

For Maury, Bryson Morressette led the way with 11 points while Isaiah Kirk and Deacon Taylor each scored 10 points. Other scorers for Maury were Torren Pruitt with six, Dante Houston with four, Reece Jarrett with two.

It was a quick start to the game for East Ridge as they built a 7-0 lead on a Carpenter three and baskets from Braden Smith and Cobble. However, Maury answered as Morressette hit two 3-pointers and Kirk scored four, and Maury led 12-11 after one.

In the second quarter, Maury continued to hold onto the lead as four players scored in the quarter. East Ridge took a lead late in the half but Kirk got a layup to fall while getting fouled with under a second to go to give Maury a 21-19 lead at the half.

However, the third quarter was where the tide turned as East Ridge came out firing. The Bears scored 19 points in the quarter, holding Maury to six points as they took a 38-27 lead. East Ridge was led in the quarter by seven points from Smith and six from Covington. Carpenter and Braden Smith also hit 3-pointers.

In the fourth, East Ridge quickly got the lead to 14 and seemed to be in cruise control. But Maury would not go down without a fight as Taylor scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to get Maury within four points. However, East Ridge calmed down after a timeout and were able to close out the game. Braden Smith added five more points in the quarter while Maltba and Carpenter each hit free throws.

Rutledge girls hold off late West View rally in championship

West View got a 16-point Rutledge lead down to five with two minutes to go on Tuesday evening but could not finish off the comeback as Rutledge held on for a 46-35 victory.

Rutledge was led in the game by McKinley Mills with 14 points while Cora Dalton added eight points. Other scorers for Rutledge were Abrie Nichols with seven points, Briley Caldwell with six points, Brooklyn Roach with five points, Maribeth Stratton with four points and Kali Waldop with two points.

For West View, Zoey Zazueta battled foul trouble but still finished with 15 points. Other scorers for West View were Eva Boudier with six points, Adyson Collins with five points, Elizabeth Smith with four points and Tenlee Bruce with three points.

It was a low-scoring affair to start as West View led 6-4 after the first quarter. Bruce hit a 3-pointer for West View while Boudier also scored.

In the second quarter, both offenses picked it up with Rutledge scoring 14 points to take an 18-13 lead. Nichols had four points in the quarter while five others for Rutledge scored two points. Zazueta scored all seven points in the quarter for West View.

The third quarter was all Rutledge as they scored 17 more points and held West View to six to lead 35-19. Mills had seven points in the quarter while Dalton hit a 3-pointer.

In the fourth, West View’s press began to wear on Rutledge as the lead quickly dropped to nine. However, Rutledge recovered and built the lead back to 13 before West View made one final charge.

The rally started as Zazueta scored and then scored again while being fouled after West View forced a turnover. That cut the lead to eight, and it was five seconds later as Zazueta missed the free throw but West View got an offensive rebound and kicked it to Boudier who drilled a 3-pointer.

But Rutledge once again was able to just hold on and made their free throws down the stretch for the win. Caldwell had four points in the quarter while Mills added three.

Lincoln Heights boys cruise past West View in third-place game

Lincoln Heights built an early lead and cruised from there as they took third place with a 46-31 victory over West View.

Lincoln was led in the game by Tyliek Phipps with 11 points while Riley Dabbs added nine. Others scorers for Lincoln were Jamere Williams with eight, Jalynn Williams with seven, Kel Fugate with five, Jaron Rumph with two and Camden Dailey with two.

For West View, Ever Molzon led the way with nine points. Other scorers for West View were Tucker McClan with five, Sutton Smith with three, Christian Evans with three, Collin Rouse with three, Zander Cowman with two, Dalton Misenheimer with two and Riley McClellan with two.

Lincoln Heights opened the game strong as they led 11-4 after the first quarter. Jamere Williams had five points to lead Lincoln.

In the second, it was more of the same as Lincoln added 10 more points and led 21-10 at the half. Dabbs and Phipps each had four points.

The third quarter saw Lincoln build their lead to 17 as they led 32-15 heading to the fourth. Phipps added five more points while three others for Lincoln scored two.

In the fourth, Jalynn Williams scored seven points as Lincoln cruised to the victory.

Maury girls complete impressive comeback over Jefferson for third-place finish

Maury girls outscored Jefferson 23-5 in the fourth quarter on Tuesday as they took home a come-from-behind victory, 45-37.

Maury was led in the game by Avery Noe with 13 points while Fayth Holland added nine points. Other scorers for Maury were Braelyn Miller with eight, Emma Morris with six, Avery Henderson with five, Kenzli Trent with two and Layla Devotie with two.

For Jefferson, Miley Parker led the way with 19 points while Addison Brooks added 12 points. Other scorers for Jefferson were Neveah Woolman with four and Kayli Reece with two.

It was all Jefferson to start as they led 10-2 after one. Woolman and Brooks each had four points while Parker scored the other two.

In the second, Maury added 12 points but still trailed Jefferson 22-14 at the half. Brooks had eight more points for Jefferson while Henderson had five for Maury.

In the third, Jefferson added on to their lead as they led 32-22 heading to the final seven minutes. Parker was the star for Jefferson in the quarter with all 10 of Jefferson’s points.

However, the fourth quarter was all Maury as they scored 23 times to take home the hard fought victory. Noe scored 10 points in the fourth quarter while Morris added six and Miller and Holland each had four. Parker scored all five of Jefferson’s points in the fourth.