Methodical Offense + Tight Defense Send Host Brownsboro Past Center, 44-21, in Great East Texas Shootout

BROWNSBORO -- Patience on offense and fundamental defense almost always keep teams close in basketball games.

And sometimes, it'll help them destroy an opponent. Just ask the Brownsboro Bears.

With that formula, Brownsboro (7-2) defeated the Center Roughriders 44-21 in the second round of the Great East Texas Shootout on Thursday.

"We wanted to make sure we were patient on offense, and get the shot we wanted, not what someone else wanted to give us," said Brownsboro head coach Tobin Reid. "Watching Center play Pine Tree earlier, (Center) forced Pine Tree into an offense that they weren't accustomed to. We weren't going to live and die by the three-pointer. We were going to get our shot."

Brownsboro used a balanced scoring attack led by Blake Ralson's game-high 12 points. Sophomore Will Bailey added 10 points and Davonte Givens chipped in with seven. Junior Jared Bragdon pulled down a team-high eight rebounds.

Brownsboro jumped out to an 11-0 first quarter run behind eight points from Ralson, including two three-pointers.

The Bears started the second quarter on an 8-2 run by being patient and not settling for jumpers. Givens followed two free throws with a runner in the lane that gave Brownsboro a 19-2 lead at the 4:10 mark. Then Givens' drive to the hoop and three-point play gave Brownsboro a 24-2 advantage with less than two minutes left in the half.

At this point, Center (1-1) had committed 10 turnovers. Sloppy passes and an inability to hit a shot doomed the Roughriders in the first half even though they held a significant rebounding edge (24-15).

The second half wasn't much different.

When Brody Chambers hit a cutting Kevin Elder for the assist and layup, Brownsboro led 34-13 with one minute remaining in the third quarter.

"We always talk about keeping people in front of you, cutting off the angles, denying people one pass away, help-side defense," Reid said. "(Center) is athletic and wanted to get to the basket, so we wanted to force them to earn their outside shots. Fortunately tonight, they couldn't make those outside shots."

In the fourth, Center's Jemarcuss Jones hit a layup, followed by a Kam'Ron Parks move to the hoop that got Center within 21, 38-17. The Roughriders wouldn't get any closer.

Center was led by Jones' six points and Darron Bolton's six rebounds.

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Great East Texas Shootout

At Brownsboro
Thursday-Saturday

BOYS BRACKET
Thursday's Games
Game 1 -- Bullard 61, Tyler Grace 60
Game 2 -- Crandall 70, Tyler All Saints 57
Game 3 -- Sunnyvale 43, Van 29
Game 4 -- Chapel Hill 68, Quinlan Ford 65
Game 5 -- Brownsboro 66, Kemp 37
Game 6 -- Gladewater 52, Tyler T.K. Gorman 47
Game 7 -- Troup, bye
Game 8 -- Center 46, Pine Tree 40
Game 9 -- Crandall 57, Chapel Hill 49
Game 10 -- Sunnyvale 51, Gladewater 37
Game 11 -- Troup 61, Sanger 56
Game 12 -- Brownsboro 44, Center 21
Friday's Games
Game 13 -- Tyler Grace, bye
Game 14 -- Van vs. Tyler T.K. Gorman, 9:15 a.m. (HS)
Game 15 -- Kemp vs. Pine Tree, 9:15 a.m. (INT)
Game 16 -- Tyler All Saints vs. Quinlan Ford, 9:15 a.m. (JH)
Game 17 -- Chapel Hill vs. Gladewater, 10:45 a.m. (ELEM)
Game 18 -- Bullard vs. Troup, 12:15 p.m. (HS)
Game 19 -- Game 14 loser vs. Game 16 loser, 12:15 p.m. (JH)
Game 20 -- Game 13 loser vs. Game 15 loser, 12:15 p.m. (INT)
Game 21 -- Sanger vs. Tyler Grace, 1:30 p.m. (JH)
Game 22 -- Game 14 winner vs. Game 16 winner, 3 p.m. (ELEM)
Game 23 -- Crandall vs. Sunnyvale, 4:30 p.m. (HS)
Game 24 -- Center vs. Game 18 loser, 5:45 p.m. (JH)
Game 25 -- Brownsboro vs. Game 18 winner, 7:15 p.m. (HS)
Saturday's Games
Game 26 -- Game 15 winner vs. Game 21 winner, 8:45 a.m. (HS)
Game 27 -- Game 19 winner vs. Game 21 loser, 8:45 a.m. (INT)
Game 28 -- Game 17 winner vs. Game 24 winner, 11:30 a.m. (ELEM)
Game 29 -- Game 20 winner vs. Game 27 winner, 12:45 p.m. (INT)
Game 30 (Consolation) -- Game 22 winner vs. Game 26 winner, 12:45 p.m. (HS)
Game 31 (Third-Place) -- Game 23 loser vs. Game 25 loser, 2 p.m. (HS)
Game 32 (Championship) -- Game 23 winner vs. Game 25 winner, 6:15 p.m. (HS)