Chick-fil-A Classic American Bracket Saturday Recap

The 2023 Chick-fil-A Classic was held at River Bluff High School this week. On Saturday, a new champion was crowned in the American Backet: Ridge View (SC). Take a look at a recap the Championship Game, other Consoloation Games, and various tournament awards:   Final Scores:   Lancaster (SC) 65, Imani Christian (PA) 51   Keenan (SC 57), River Bluff (SC) 46   John Marshall (VA) 72, St John's (DC) 70   Ridge View (SC) 58, Grayson (GA) 53   Final Standings:   1. Ridge View (SC) (3-0)   2. Grayson (GA) (2-1)   3. John Marshall (VA) (2-1)   4. St John's (DC) (1-2)   5. Keenan (SC) (2-1)   6. River Bluff (SC) (1-2)   7. Lancaster (SC) (1-2)   8. Imani Christian (PA) (0-3)   All-Tournament Team:   [player_tooltip player_id='1463715' first='Cedric' last='Schofield'] (Keenan)   [player_tooltip player_id='1692194' first='Joshua' last='Smith'] (Ridge View)   [player_tooltip player_id='1766186' first='Yasir' last='Cromer'] (River Bluff)   Amir Taylor (Grayson)   [player_tooltip player_id='1782682' first='Latrell' last='Allmond'] (John Marshall)   Most Valuable Player:   [player_tooltip player_id='1692243' first='Korie' last='Corbett'] (Ridge View)   Most Outstanding Player:   Gicarri Harris (Grayson)   Shorthanded Bruins Get Past Imani Chrisitan   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.47-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.47-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2310777" style="width:424px;height:auto" /></a></figure>   Lancaster were without both [player_tooltip player_id='1145334' first='Jordan' last='Watford'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1955613' first='Columbus' last='Parker'] for their 7th Place Matchup with Imani Christian but the Bruins still emerged victorious. They clearly put an emphasis on pushing the pace during the game and got good early activity from bigs Zach Graham and Julius Garner. [player_tooltip player_id='1220041' first='Malik' last='Tinsley'] (pictured) was also quite aggressive looking for his shots and led all scorers with 8 at halftime. Although Imani Christian improved in the third quarter, the Bruins drew up a perfect baseline out of bounds play to get Graham space, and he finished through a foul and made the free to put Lancaster up 45-44 at the end of the period. Their lead grew to double-digits through another Tinsley bucket and they continued to get stops down the stretch to seal the victory. Malik led the Bruins with 14 points, followed by Graham and [player_tooltip player_id='1973338' first='RJ' last='Brown'] with 12 points each. Nate Brazil had 15 for the visitors.   Keenan Defeat Hosts in 5th Place Game   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.46-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.46-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2310778" style="width:422px;height:auto" /></a></figure>   The Raiders have had some struggles so far this season but they did not show any signs of it against River Bluff on Saturday Afternoon. [player_tooltip player_id='1463715' first='Cedric' last='Schofield'] came out on a mission, scoring 8 of Keenan's first 10 points. After trailing for the entirety of the first half, the Raiders went on a 13-0 at the of the half to take a double-digit lead into the locker room. They did a good job on the defensive end forcing River Bluff into turnovers or tough shots. The Raider lead grew to as much as 17 in the quarter before the Gators started to cut it back down thanks to a pair of [player_tooltip player_id='1766186' first='Yasir' last='Cromer'] buckets. Cromer did not have his most efficient game, but he had much more success scoring the ball in the second half and finished with 20 points and 7 assists. Keenan's [player_tooltip player_id='1276361' first='Brian' last='Sumpter'] (pictured) had a couple of highlight plays in the fourth quarter to keep momentum on their side and finish off the Gators. He had 14 Points and Schofield finished with 23.   Almond Buzzer Beater Wins It For John Marshall   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.45-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.45-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2310779" style="width:426px;height:auto" /></a></figure>   Last year's American Bracket Champions found themselves in a very tight affair late in the 3rd Place Game. Both teams had very even first halves, with the high-level scoring of [player_tooltip player_id='1259544' first='Damon' last='Thompson'] (pictured) and Atosh Newman canceling out. Although Sophmore [player_tooltip player_id='1782682' first='Latrell' last='Allmond'] struggled with foul trouble for a lot of the game, his presence was felt in a positive way whenever he was on the court. In the fourth quarter alone, he had 8 points, 4 blocks, and 3 offensive rebounds, including the most important one on the final possession when he tipped in Thompson's missed layup just before time expired to win the game for the Justices. Newman led all scorers with 20 points followed by Thompson with 17, but [player_tooltip player_id='1494108' first='Aiden' last='Argabright'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1259621' first='Dominique' last='Bailey'] each hit timely shots for John Marshall down the stretch.   Blazers Remain Undefeated, Claim 2023 American Bracket Championship   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.44-PM.jpeg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/12/Image-12-31-23-at-10.44-PM.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-2310780" style="width:423px;height:auto" /></a></figure>   The final game of the 2023 Chick-fil-A Classic was an instant classic between two undefeated teams. Grayson's Gicarri Harris and Jacob Willkins each had some early highlight plays while [player_tooltip player_id='1692194' first='Joshua' last='Smith'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1158877' first='Reggie' last='Mack'] each hit 3s as both teams found their feet early in the game. Harris, in particular, caused a lot of problems for the Blazers in the opening stages. He had 19 first half points and was able to get just about any shot he wanted. But Ridge View's depth balanced out that scoring. [player_tooltip player_id='1972146' first='Malachi' last='Cooper'] (pictured) went on a 5-point solo run between the 2:30 and 1:45 marks of the second quarter to tie the game at 27. In the third quarter, Ridge View did better job of defending Harris but began to have issues with Ram big man Amir Taylor. As the Blazers began to pick up some foul trouble, Coach Staley turned to Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2104388' first='Robert' last='Wylie']. Wylie was huge for Ridge View down the stretch making hustle plays and battling with Taylor on the boards. And with 90 seconds remaining in the game, Robert hit the biggest shot of the entire tournament to put the Blazers up 2. From then on, the Blazers held tight to their lead and would earn the American Bracket Crown. Harris and Cooper led all scorers with 25 and 15 points respectively.

The 2023 Chick-fil-A Classic was held at River Bluff High School this week. On Saturday, a new champion was crowned in the American Backet: Ridge View (SC). Take a look at a recap the Championship Game, other Consoloation Games, and various tournament awards: