Clutch shooting by Brandon Childress helped send Wesleyan Christian Academy to Saturday's final at the Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions.
Photo by Randy Kemp
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A crowd of over 8,000 fans packed Missouri State University’s JQH Arena on Friday night in large part to see the highly-anticipated duel between star forwards
Harry Giles of
Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.) and
Ivan Rabb of
Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.).
While the battle on the blocks didn’t quite materialize between Giles and Rabb, Wesleyan Christian’s supporting cast stepped up to send the nation’s No. 8-ranked team to Saturday’s final at the Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions with a 59-49 victory.
Harry Giles, Wesleyan Christian
Photo by Randy Kemp
The Trojans (22-2) will meet No. 6
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), a runaway winner over
Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.) in Friday’s first semifinal.
Brandon Childress – the son of former Wake Forest star Randolph Childress – led Wesleyan against Bishop O'Dowd with 15 points, hitting 4 of 5 from beyond the arc. The 6-0 junior guard also dished out seven assists.
Giles was far from a no-show, tallying 14 points and 11 boards. The five-star 2016 prospect crushed home a set play alley-oop late in the third quarter that vanquished O’Dowd’s comeback hopes.
Kwe'Shaun Parker, a high-flying junior guard, added 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists while
Jalen Johnson – yet another Wesleyan junior – contributed 10 points.
Boise State-bound point guard
Paris Austin paced O’Dowd (8-3) with 15 points. Rabb, the No. 4-ranked prospect in the
247Sports Composite, scored 14 and snatched 13 rebounds.
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) 86, Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.) 59After scoring 32 points in the opening round of play at the Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions,
Dwayne Bacon of Oak Hill Academy went for 30 more Friday as the Warriors dismantled Paul VI.
Bacon, a 6-6 guard with a made-for-the-NBA body, connected on 9 of 16 field goal attempts and helped the Warriors (25-1) beat the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference power for the second time this season.
Oak Hill Academy also received major contributions from Missouri-bound point man
Terrence Phillips (13 points, five assists), former Paul VI guard
Joshua Reaves (12 points) and burly forward
Joe Hampton (11 points, six rebounds, six assists).
Paul VI (7-8) was led by junior wing
V.J. King, who finished with 19 points and eight rebounds.
Chino Hills (Calif.) 61, Parkview (Springfield, Mo.) 45
UCLA commitment
Lonzo Ball, a 6-foot-6 junior point guard, took over late and finished with 29 points, 13 rebounds and four assists to lead the Huskies (11-3) to victory.
Brother
LiAngelo Ball added 13 points as UCLA head coach Steve Alford sat courtside to see the duo in action.
Chino Hills forced 29 Parkview (7-7) turnovers. The Vikings received a team-high 18 points from senior point guard
Connor Ratcliff.
Bentonville (Ark.) 47, Waynesville (Mo.) 28Cold shooting plagued both teams but star junior guard
Malik Monk came up with 21 points and 12 rebounds to give Bentonville the edge.
Monk, a Top 10 2016 prospect, shot just 5 of 18 from the floor but connected on all 10 free throw attempts.
Juwan Morgan, a 6-8 forward headed to Indiana, struggled for Waynesville after suffering an injury against Bishop O’Dowd in the opening round. He was just 3 of 15 from the field and finished with seven points and seven rebounds.
Bentonville (36.6 percent) and Waynesville (31.6) combined to hit on just 27 of 79 attempts from the field.
Saturday's schedule2:30 p.m. ET (Seventh Place) – Parkview vs. Waynesville
4 p.m. (Fifth Place) – Chino Hills vs. Bentonville
7 p.m. (Third Place) – Bishop O'Dowd vs. Paul VI
9 p.m. (Championship) – Oak Hill Academy vs. Wesleyan Christian Academy