2A State Championship: Gray Collegiate vs. Oceanside Collegiate

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Midlands school Gray Collegiate and Upstate school Wren had the honor of being the two schools that sent both its girls and boys teams to the USC-Aiken Convocation Center for the state championships.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wren finished with one win (boys) and one loss (girls). The War Eagles had a chance to go 2-0 following the girls' game with Bishop England that resulted in a 40-32 win vs. the Bishops.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gray Collegiate, one of the newer schools in the Palmetto State, is a team that has become used to taking home boys basketball state hardware since becoming SCHSL-affiliated. In order for that to happen this go-round, it had to get past a squad from Oceanside Collegiate, another of the Palmetto State's newer schools, that was making its first state appearance and is fresh off a dominant performance against Andrew Jackson in the Lower State Final. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The new school vs. new school matchup under USC-Aiken's Friday night lights went the way of the War Eagles with the final score reading 53-43 over the Landsharks.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“It doesn't get old, but we've got to keep working,” Gray coach Dion Bethea says. “That was part of what I just told the guys. If you want to be a state champion, you've got to work hard. And they came out, they worked together and we ended up winning.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Quarter By Quarter</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gray Collegiate displayed early why it has had so much championship success in recent years as they began the game with a 10-4 run. Oceanside Collegiate displayed exactly why it has been one of this year's most feared 2A teams as they answered to tie the tilt at 10 apiece. With one complete, it was 14-12 with the War Eagles ahead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The two teams continued to be as evenly matched as two teams could be in the second half. The Landsharks managed to outscore Gray by one (12-11) in the second quarter and the score read 25-24 in favor of the War Eagles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gray managed to put a bit of distance between itself on Oceanside as the War Eagles' lead increased late in the third quarter. At one point it was 10, but as time expired on the third frame, it was 39-30 – advantage still with the War Eagles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With less than four minutes left to play in the game, Gray's lead was once again back up to double-digits at 10 (43-33). The Landsharks remained within striking distance, but as time continued to dwindle, it was more of a boon for the War Eagles. When the final seconds ticked off of the clock, Gray's teams went 2-2 on the day at USC-Aiken.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“All the games that we played were tough games,” Bethea says. “We just had to sit there and sit down and really guard people. We didn't shoot well from the free throw line, I'm just glad we made free throws when it counted – to win the game.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Primetime Performers</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829931,"width":333,"height":218,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9138-crop-2737x1797-1677908309.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9138-crop-2737x1797-1677908309.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829931" width="333" height="218" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Veterans paved the way to another state championship for Gray Collegiate. One of those veterans was senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1186672' first='Avantae' last='Parker']</strong>. He finished with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds to go alongside a pair of steals. Parker tallied 11 of his 13 in the first half. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829936,"width":338,"height":221,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9336-crop-2639x1733-1677908462.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9336-crop-2639x1733-1677908462.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829936" width="338" height="221" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As the game went longer, a junior in <strong>Braylin Thomas</strong> got stronger. After going scoreless for the first half, he finished strong to also have 13 points. He also brought down five rebounds, was 5-10 shooting from the field and made three of his four free throw attempts. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829954,"width":341,"height":224,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9346-crop-1833x1204-1677908748.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9346-crop-1833x1204-1677908748.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829954" width="341" height="224" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Montraivis White</strong> had a fitting conclusion to his time wearing a War Eagles uniform. The senior guard who stands at 5-foot-11 contributed eight points to the Gray Collegiate cause. In addition, he dished out four assists and was a perfect 4-4 from the charity stripe. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829961,"width":347,"height":228,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9213-crop-2235x1468-1677909063.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9213-crop-2235x1468-1677909063.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829961" width="347" height="228" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the Landsharks, its leading point-getter came off its bench in the form of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='865299' first='Calvin' last='Davinroy']</strong>. Playing in his final game as a senior at Oceanside, he finished with 10 points in addition to being 4-8 from the field. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829970,"width":350,"height":230,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9168-crop-3226x2118-1677909209.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9168-crop-3226x2118-1677909209.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829970" width="350" height="230" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Landsharks were also aided by a pair of nine-point scorers. One of those was <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1107732' first='Reid' last='Warden']</strong> whose nine also came alongside going 3-6 from the field. He too was playing in his final game with Oceanside and logged 19 minutes in said contest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1829972,"width":356,"height":234,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9179-2-crop-3003x1972-1677909336.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_9179-2-crop-3003x1972-1677909336.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1829972" width="356" height="234" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another nine-point scorer for the Landsharks was <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1444154' first='Travis' last='Stickney']</strong>. He also bolstered Oceanside's efforts on the glass by bringing down six rebounds. Stickney also dished out four assists and made three of his four attempts from the foul line. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Coach Bethea on Both Gray Teams Winning</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Coach (Brandon) Wallace was on that staff the last five years and he put a lot of pressure on me tonight. He was like, look, with us winning the first state one, we had to step up and make sure we get it done, too. But I'm happy for all of our kids at Gray Collegiate Academy. It's truly a family there and there's nothing like seeing those kids get an opportunity to hold that trophy.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Closing the Book</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The record for the War Eagles concludes with a 25-6 record and a 2A crown – their fifth in six seasons. That of the Landsharks concludes at 24-6.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>So Long, Seniors</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the War Eagles, <strong>Devin Johnson</strong>, <strong>Montraivis White</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1328199' first='Mychael' last='Mitchell']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1186672' first='Avantae' last='Parker']</strong> and <strong>Brandon Jamison</strong> are the 2023s departing from Gray. Oceanside will see <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1107731' first='Malachi' last='Stevens']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1107730' first='Makhi' last='Rivers']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1151019' first='Will' last='Regan']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='865299' first='Calvin' last='Davinroy']</strong>, <strong>Jake Rook</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1107732' first='Reid' last='Warden']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='865296' first='Justin' last='Coleman']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1063833' first='Lukas' last='Schou']</strong> graduate. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->