4A Region 8 Tournament: Bartlett and Whitehaven advance

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>No. 1 Bartlett defeated No. 2 Southwind, 52-39, Tuesday evening in the first game of the TSSAA Division 1 Class 4A Region Tournament semifinals round.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>No. 1 Whitehaven defeated No. 2 Houston by the final score of 58-48 in the final matchup of the evening. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both top seeds will meet Thursday evening in the championship game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are quick hits from both games:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>All eyes on Frison</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mustangs‘ starting point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2101889' first='Justin' last='Frison'] had the full attention of the Tigers. Whitehaven knew it had to make life difficult for this season's 4A District 15 Player of the Year and Class 4A Mr. Basketball finalist in a do or die game. Head coach Willie Kemp placed the responsibility of containing Frison onto the shoulders of senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1560097' first='Kayin' last='Mitchell']. He guarded Frison most of the night and contested shot attempts that have fallen for Houston's star over the course of the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mitchell followed him all over the court, refusing to give him great looks from the perimeter. Face guarding Frison, blitzing the ball screens he was coming off of, and being physical with him resulted in a positive for the Tigers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>”He's one of the top players in the state. Frison is a hell of a player,” Kemp said about Frison, who finished the night with 9 points. “But, also, Kayin is a hell of a defender. So he came in, and a player like that, he had to make it tough for him. He took some tough shots. He made a few, but he missed a few. But, Kayin came in, and he played great defense on Frison tonight.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mitchell was a plus on offense as well. He scored 10 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Balanced scoring</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior big man [player_tooltip player_id='2886050' first='Aliyu' last='Idris'] led Whitehaven with 18 points. Idris made a 3 right in front of his team's bench in the 4th quarter that helped the Tigers build a 47-34 lead. [player_tooltip player_id='2139247' first='Ja'Michael' last='Mitchell'] added 14. The senior guard converted on a driving layup as the buzzer sounded at the end of the 3rd quarter. The layup, for the moment, gave Whitehaven its biggest lead of the night (42-32).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='3258055' first='Eric' last='Winston'] finished with 9 and went 3 for 4 from the free throw line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other notes</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The size of the Tigers bothered Houston. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='2205018' first='Gavin' last='Fitzpatrick'], [player_tooltip player_id='2886051' first='Isaiah' last='Grant'], and Idris were contesting shots near the rim, making it difficult for the Mustangs to get great looks throughout the contest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bartlett cruised to a win</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers were only up 3 at the half. Then, early in the 3rd quarter, Bartlett went on a quick 6-0 run and outscored the Jaguars, 22-8, in the 3rd quarter. The Panthers built a 44-24 lead early in the fourth quarter after a 3 from senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2116626' first='Ethan' last='Gatewood']. Bartlett turned up its defensive pressure and forced Southwind into turnovers and contested shots. Once the Panthers built a double-digit lead, they were on cruise control for most of the second half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2194475' first='Braylon' last='Williams'] led Bartlett with 14 points. [player_tooltip player_id='2083148' first='Axton' last='Perry'] finished with 10.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->