7 best players from the DII-A State Tournament Semifinals Round

<p>Reaching the final four means each team is one win away from a spot in the championship game.</p> <p>Two spots were in play on Thursday in the Division II-A Boys State Tournament semifinals round.</p> <p>In the first game, Goodpasture defeated Evangelical Christian School, 49-44. Christ Presbyterian School took care of business in the second game, knocking off Tipton-Rosemark Academy, 81-70.</p> <p>Big plays had to be made. Special players had to rise to the occasion.</p> <p>Both things happened for all four participants.</p> <p>Here are the seven best players from the DII-A State Tournament semifinals round.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="537290" first="PJ" last="Smith"], </strong><strong>Goodpasture</strong>: The senior point guard made timely shots for the Cougars in the second half. At the top of the fourth quarter, Smith converted on a 3-point play then scored two more to give his team a 38-29 lead. Throughout the final minutes of the game, the Lee University commit made big shots from the free throw line to keep his team out front. Smith was getting to his spots on the court, draining shots from 17-feet out and from 3-point range. He finished with 25 points on 7 of 9 shooting. Smith went 7 for 8 from the free throw line.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="775537" first="Kameron" last="Jones"]</strong>, <strong>ECS</strong>: Jones did what he could to keep the Eagles competitive on Thursday. He was the team’s offense for the entire game. His smooth ball handles allowed him to get into the lane whenever he was ready to do so. Jones’ ball handles also allowed him to create enough space to get shots off from the perimeter. He finished with 27 points on 11 of 22 shooting.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="775578" first="Braden" last="Zapp"]</strong>, <strong>CPA</strong>: Zapp was turning the ball over in the first half, thanks in part to the TRA Rebels’ 1-2-2 press, but he settled down in the second half to make some much-needed uncontested layups. The Trevecca commit looked relaxed in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, as TRA’s press didn’t seem to bother him as he getting out of it unscathed. Zapp led the Lions with 21 points and went 8 for 9 from the free throw line.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="787686" first="Braeden" last="Moore"]</strong>, <strong>CPA</strong>: Moore finished with 17 points on a night when he was in foul trouble, and the Lions had to finish the game without him. The 6-foot-8 small forward did knock down three 3s in the game. Moore didn’t have a great shooting night (6 of 17), but he made up for it on the glass, with 10 rebounds.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1018119" first="Evan" last="Shiflet"]</strong>, <strong>CPA</strong>: When Zapp was turning the basketball over, Shiflet had to step in and attack the Rebels’ press. His poise and relaxation led to five assists off TRA’s pressure. Shiflet, who also had 17 points, was efficient as well, going 5 for 8 from the field. He helped the Lions close the game from the free throw line by going 7 for 8.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1018122" first="Jake" last="Dykstra"]</strong>, <strong>CPA</strong>: Dykstra’s jump shot is an important attribute to the Lions’ success on offense. His 3-point shooting was needed in the second half. Dykstra made a 3 at the end of the third quarter to put CPA up 57-51. He made his fourth one early in the fourth quarter to give the Lions a 62-54 lead before the Rebels got within 3 off a 3-point play by [player_tooltip player_id="537221" first="<strong>Alex</strong>" last="<strong>Anderson</strong>"]. Without those two 3s by Dykstra, CPA wouldn’t have been able to pull away from TRA in the fourth.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1021729" first="Tyler" last="Byrd"]</strong>, <strong>Tipton</strong>-<strong>Rosemark Academy</strong>: Byrd didn’t take a lot jump shots against the Lions. He didn’t need to. Byrd lived in the paint all game long. CPA had problems keeping him out of the paint. Byrd’s athleticism and upper body strength kept the Rebels close for most of the game. He finished with 36 points and 12 rebounds on 17 of 29 shooting.</p>