Lakeside JV girls take county title from Greenbrier

Donnie Burch now knows what the atmosphere in both locker rooms is like after a championship basketball game.

//

Two 3-point plays created different outcomes for Lakeside's boys and girls junior varsity coach at the Columbia County JV basketball tournament at Evans High School.

Burch led his girls to a 35-33 victory against Greenbrier on a 3-point play with a little more than a minute remaining. Burch's boys team also made the championship game, but lost to Evans, 41-39, after the Knights converted a 3-point play with 4.9 seconds remaining.

Lakeside's girls ended Greenbrier's streak of JV championships at two.

Guard Carolyn Hannecken scored 14 points.

The Panthers grabbed the lead on a key 3-point play with 1:09 remaining, and their defense did the rest.

The Wolfpack had many chances to tie or take the lead in the final minute, but they turned the ball over once on a traveling violation and had two shots blocked in the final 16 seconds.

"They were looking forward to winning it again," Greenbrier coach Chip Warren said of his team. "They didn't quite do it. I told them there's no reason to be disappointed; they played their hearts out."

Greenbrier guard Meredith Shelton's 3-pointer with 1:50 left tied the game. But the Wolfpack would get only a free throw after that.

Lakeside led 12-5 after a solid first quarter, but Greenbrier stormed back to tie it by halftime. Lakeside took a 1-point lead into the fourth quarter and never trailed the remainder of the game.

"It's a little momentum-builder for varsity," Burch said. "It certainly helps."

The Panther boys beat the Knights on Friday -- the final game of the JV regular season -- to earn the tournament's No. 1 seed. Burch's team then beat Greenbrier in the early round Saturday morning, and Evans beat Harlem to set up the rematch.

The Knights made the big plays down the stretch Saturday to avenge the Friday loss and take the championship.

Evans called a timeout with 12.9 seconds left after Lakeside took a 1-point lead.

Burch told his undersized team to watch for the lob to one of the Knights big men. Evans coach Brian Killips, though, told his players to spread the floor.

Knights guard Tevin Nelson drove the lane, drew the foul and made the lay-up with 4.9 seconds.

The free throw also was good, and the Knights were left only to survive an errant shot by Panthers forward Justin Pitock.

"We were a very athletic team," Killips said. "And when they executed, they were a very good athletic team. And I saw some of that execution tonight, where we were able to actually execute in a half-court set and step up in the man-to-man defense."