Class 4A State Championship: Lancaster vs North Augusta

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>USE CODE “baxley30” FOR 30% OFF THE FIRST PURCHASE OF ANY SUBSCRIPTION</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All roads have led to Florence and the last two teams standing in Class 4A are Lancaster and North Augusta. Prep Hoops SC was at the Florence Center on Friday for this game and will be there to cover the other five classifications as well. Check out my game recap from the 2025 Class 4A State Championship Game: </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Final Score: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lancaster 69, North Augusta 55</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Notable Performers:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1145334' first='Jordan' last='Watford'] (Lancaster) - 19 Points, 11 Rebounds, and 4 Assists on 6-12 FG</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1955613' first='Columbus' last='Parker'] (Lancaster) - 19 Points on 3-6 3FG</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2351252' first='Jacarey' last='Ballard'] (Lancaster) - 13 Points + 2 Steals</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1157438' first='Daron' last='Dunbar'] (North Augusta) - 16 Points, 11 Rebounds, and 4 Blocks on 7-14 FG</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2642311' first='Jamison' last='McKenzie'] (North Augusta) - 21 Points + 8 Rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1206192' first='Quh'mareon' last='Webb'] (North Augusta) - 10 Points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game Recap: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On paper, this looked to be the most even matchup that we would see in Florence. Both teams came in at 26-1, were #1 and #2 in the SCBCA and MaxPreps Polls, and featured a Top 10 Senior - [player_tooltip player_id='1145334' first='Jordan' last='Watford'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1157438' first='Daron' last='Dunbar']. Although they were the clear two best prospects on the court on Friday, it was very much a tale of two halves for them. Dunbar had the stronger start, scoring 5 points of an 8-0 Yellow Jacket open. [player_tooltip player_id='2351252' first='Jacarey' last='Ballard'] was crucial in helping Lancaster find their footing - using his awareness, offensive skill, and defensive determination to impact the game on both ends of the floor. The Bruins hit their stride from the perimeter in the second quarter with made threes from [player_tooltip player_id='1955613' first='Columbus' last='Parker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1220041' first='Malik' last='Tinsley']. But, [player_tooltip player_id='2642311' first='Jamison' last='McKenzie']'s interior presence was crucial for North Augusta who led 22-12 in points in the paint and 9-2 in second-chance points. Lancaster started the third quarter on an 11-2 run as it took the Yellow Jackets 4:53 to score their first field goal which came from an aggressive Dunbar putback. Tinsley hit another massive three-pointer on the first possession of the fourth quarter and Watford continued his third-quarter dominance as the Bruins began to pull away. 15 of Watford's 19 points came in the second half and Lancaster out-rebounded North Augusta 20-10 over the last 16:00 - two major areas of halftime adjustment for Head Coach Jerron Cauthen. The dagger was a left-corner three from Parker which received a friendly roll from the Florence-Center rims and put the Bruins up 59-48 with 3:19 to play, meaning the biggest party in Lancaster since 1950 could start a little bit early.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->