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An 11-0 run brought Cane Ridge to within 54-53 before Evan Klemm’s layup turned the tide in Lebanon’s favor for good as the Blue Devils advanced to last night’s semifinal against Green Hill with a 17-13 record.

Lebanon led 19-9 at the first-quarter break as Marques Anglin scored seven of his 22 points during the opening stanza.

Jamari Hardaway hit three triples in the second quarter as Cane Ridge rallied to within 19-18. A putback and free throw by Lebanon’s T.J. Searcy stopped that run and two free throws by Amaure Manier sent the Blue Devils into halftime ahead 25-21.

Anglin was a force inside during a back-and-forth third quarter with eight of his game-high 22 points as the Blue Devils overcame three one-point Cane Ridge leads. Manier’s leaping save of a possession from going out of bounds led to Zay Anglin’s layup at the buzzer for a 45-39 lead.

That was part of a 13-0 run which launched Lebanon to a 51-39 lead.

But Tyshaun Poore was unstoppable in the fourth with half of his six 3-pointers and 13 points total in the period to fuel Cane Ridge’s final run.

Searcy added 11 points for Lebanon while Manier, Klemm and John Binion each scored six, Manier four free throws and Elliott Greer and Quencee Bradford a 3 apiece. The Blue Devils dropped in 15 of 18 foul shots with all but one coming from Manier, Searcy and Marques Anglin.

Poore poured in 22 points, 19 of which came after halftime, while Hardaway hit three triples for the Ravens, who had just five two-point baskets and 8 of 10 free throws in finishing a 14-14 season.

Green Hill’s third win over Hillsboro eliminates defending state champsNASHVILLE — Hillsboro had accomplished a lot since Green Hill beat the defending 4A state champions twice in December.

But the Hawks turned the clock back to the holiday season last Saturday by beating the District 8-champion Burros 48-43 in the Region 4-4A first round at James Lawson.

It was a back-and-forth battle throughout the game played inside the Thunderdome. Green Hill took the lead for good with 37.4 seconds to play when Hayden Sheehey hit a running layup as the Hawks took a 44-43 edge.

Christian Bright stole the ball and Sheehey was fouled twice in the final 18.6 ticks, sinking all four free throws to send the Hawks to last night’s semifinal against Lebanon with a 19-12 record.

Green Hill led 13-9 at the first-quarter break before Hillsboro went into halftime ahead 23-20. The Hawks held a 34-32 edge going into the fourth.

Sheehey sank six of his seven free throws in the fourth quarter as he and Bright scored 11 points apiece for Green Hill. Jack McChurch chipped in with 10, Jaylen Searcy nine and Josh Brown two first-quarter 3-pointers en route to seven.

C.J. Cleaves tossed in 10 points before becoming one of three Burros to foul out as Hillsboro ended a 10-18 season.

Friendship falls out of State XII at Lausanne

MEMPHIS — Friendship Christian’s first foray into the State XII ended in the round of 12 last Wednesday when the Commanders fell short at Lausanne 51-47.

The Commanders returned home with a final 23-9 mark. Lausanne moved to 23-12 going into a Saturday state quarterfinal trip to Boyd-Buchanan in Chattanooga.

The Lynx led 18-16 at the first-quarter break before the Commanders climbed into a 28-28 halftime tie. Lausanne led by seven during the third quarter before settling for a 45-42 edge going into the fourth.

Zuri McCulre led Lausanne with 14 points, scoring six points apiece in the first and fourth periods. Tre Harper hit two 3-pointers on his way to 12.

Rez Parker poured in three triples as he scored 24 points in his Friendship finale. Dee Boone buried a pair of second-quarter 3s for most of his nine. Miles Fitzpatrick finished with six, Xavier Humphrey four and Sam Fitzparick and Brock Winfree two apiece.

Seniors Humphrey, Boone, Parker, Billy Young and Miles Fitzpatrick played their final games in Friendship uniforms.

Blue Devils fall short in 7-4A finalHENDERSONVILLE — Lebanon’s boys battled from an early deficit but didn’t have enough in the tank to overtake No. 7 Beech as the Buccaneers remained undefeated against District 7-4A competition with a 67-48 win in the tournament championship game on their home floor Tuesday night.

The Blue Devils fell behind 15-0 before scoring eight straight. They gradually whittled away at the deficit until Marques Anglin’s baseline jumper made it 51-46 in the fourth quarter.

But the Bucs reeled off the final nine points to seal their 28th win of the season against two losses.

“That’s something they’ve done a lot of the season is they’ve jumped out on people,� Lebanon coach Jim McDowell said. “We knew the first two or three minutes of the game were really important. We had some good looks early that didn’t go down. We had a couple of possessions where we had multiple shots and didn’t knock them down. They shot the ball well. They hit six 3s in the first half to our one. The first half I think we were 1-for-10 from 3 and the majority of them were pretty good looks.�

For the Blue Devils, an emotional week continued with the tipoff of the Region 4-4A tournament at James Lawson in Bellevue on Saturday, one day before the funeral for teammate Jayden Bailey, who died following a four-year battle with cancer just hours before Lebanon’s first district tournament game last Thursday.

Cutter Sisk, a Mr. Basketball finalist and the unanimous choice for district Most Valuable Player, added tournament MVP to his list of honors with 22 points to lead Beech while Mari Bowman finished with 14 and Cole Winters 12, including four 3-pointers.

“With their size and their length, they force you to try hit some perimeter shots,� McDowell said. “One thing we wanted to do was extend our defensive pressure. But to do that, you have to hit some baskets.�

Point guard Amare Manier led Lebanon’s comeback with 22 points, including 10 in the third quarter, as he repeatedly attacked the basket. Anglin sank 6 of 7 free throws as he threw in 13. T.J. Searcy scored six in the second half, Quencee Bradford a 3 and Zay Anglin and Evan Klemm two each as the Blue Devils slipped to 16-13.

“We had a lot of people come over here, a lot of people from Lebanon supporting these kids,� McDowell said. “I couldn’t be more proud of them for the way that they played, the way that they fought even after we got down. I knew we would definitely make a run. I was just hoping we would be able to get all the way back. When we got to that point, they went to the big man (Sisk). We knew where they were going and we didn’t do a good job stopping it.�

Manier, Anglin and Searcy were named to the all-district team, as were Wilson Central’s Grafton Graves and Ethan Ragland. Searcy was also named to the all-defensive team where he was joined by Central’s Colton McClellan and Mt. Juliet’s Chase Kupchik. Wilson Central’s Lane Ayars is the Freshman of the Year. Manier and Anglin were chosen to the all-tournament team.

The day after the opening round, a funeral service was held at LHS’ Campbell Brandon Gym/Hester Gibbs Court for Bailey, whose battle against bone cancer was an inspiration well beyond Lebanon as he returned to the court after his left arm was amputated.

The Blue Devils tipped off their first tournament game less than two hours after learning of Bailey’s death and went on to beat Gallatin that night and Green Hill two days later.

“It’s been the toughest week from an emotional standpoint,� McDowell said. “These kids, we’ve all been struggling with that, dealing with that. We’ve been doing that together. It’s really a testament to them and their resiliency. The basketball piece has been kind of a welcome distraction to an extent. It gives us some time to think about something other than that.

“At the end of the day, it puts a lot of things in perspective. It’s a game. It’s important to us. But ultimately, it’s not as important as being there for our fallen teammate’s family and the community in general.�

Hawks fall to fourth in 7-4AHENDERSONVILLE — Playing on their arch-rival’s floor just a few miles from their own, Hendersonville’s boys dominated Green Hill to capture third place in the District 7-4A tournament with a 61-35 thumping Tuesday at Beech’s Boots Scott Floor.

The Commandos scored the first eight points and Green Hill never got much closer the rest of the way as the Hawks finished fourth.

It was 13-6 at the first-quarter break, 33-16 at halftime and 50-28 going into the fourth.’’

Weston Hall hit three 3-pointers to lead Hendersonville with 20 points while Mont Seagraves scored 14. Houston Bogle buried three second-quarter 3-pointers and finished with 11 while Ayden Meadows managed 10 as the Commandos climbed to 16-13 for the season.

Christian Bright buried three triples and led Green Hill with 13 points while Mason Bates scored six on two 3s. Leyton Plummer finished with five, Jaylen Searcy a 3 and King Wright, Hayden Sheehey and Jacob Tubberville two each as the Hawks fell to 18-12.

Searcy, Bright and Jack McChurch represented Green Hill on the all-district team while Bates made the all-defensive team. Sheehey was chosen all-tournament.