The Grady Grey Knights boys basketball team won’t be hosting a state playoff game this year after a painful 47-46 loss to the Towers Titans Friday Feb. 17 in the semifinals of the region tournament.
The Grey Knights were playing for a spot in the region championship against Columbia High School and home court advantage in the first round of the state playoffs.
Grady came out flat in the first quarter, failing to get involved in the game. There were many turnovers on both sides, and neither team could build a lead. Late in the first quarter, senior guard Sedarius Smith stole the ball from the Towers point guard, only to be fouled while shooting a layup. Smith then made both of his two free throws, ending the first quarter with Towers in the lead at 12-9.
Two minutes into the second quarter, head coach Douglas Slade called a timeout for Grady, after which, junior point guard Chad Winfrey hit a transition 3-pointer to tie the game at 12. Towers transitioned to a full-court press, which forced Grady into frequent turnovers and out of position for offensive rebounds. Towers rode the press to a 23-18 halftime advantage.
Coming out of the halftime break, Grady scored the first four points, but Towers quickly responded with four straight free throws, foreshadowing the rough and chippy nature of the second half which would see both teams shoot a combined 37 foul shots. Those four free throws were the start of a 13-0 Towers run that lasted two minutes until junior center Darren Dowdell made two free throws.
The teams combined to shoot 27 free throws in a rough third quarter. Grady closed Tower’s lead from 14 points to only 4 by the end of the quarter. Senior forward Gregory Sessions scored 10 points in the quarter and made all five of his free-throw attempts.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Darren Dowdell entered the game for junior center Brandon Watkins, and during his two minutes of play, blocked two of Tower’s shots, and made two free throws, putting Grady in the lead 42-38. Towers regained the lead with a multitude of free throws.
Baskets by Brandon Watkins and Gregory Sessions along with four missed free throws by Towers allowed Grady to tie the game at 44 with two and a half minutes to go. Brandon Watkins put Grady ahead with a putback dunk, but it would be Grady’s last points of the game. With 45 seconds to go, Grady turned the ball over on a traveling violation, and on the ensuing possession fouled a Towers player,who made both free throws. Grady regained possession, but failed to make a shot. Towers then brought the ball back to its side of the court. With only 4.8 seconds to go, Grady fouled another Towers player, who only made one of the two free throws. With almost no time left, Grady tried to push the ball up court for one last opportunity, but Towers stole the ball for the win.
Despite the unfortunate loss, Grady will continue on the state playoffs, though they will not have home-court advantage in the first game. Grady players such as senior center, Traemond Jones still remain optimistic.
“If our team plays at full potential, I think we can win state,” Jones said. “It’s something about this year, about Slade’s coaching, that got kids to reach their full potential.”
