Tuesday night Sissonville took its turn at stepping in front of the runaway locomotive that is Shady Spring.
The Indians became a mere bump in the road for the defending Class AAA State champions on their way back to Charleston.
Ringing up 53 points in the opening half, Shady Spring mowed down Sissonville, 89-36, to win its Region 3 co-final, earning a return trip to the Boys State Basketball Tournament.
Shady Spring was named the No. 1 overall seed in Class AAA and will play North Marion Wednesday, March 15 inside the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
“It was just an all-out great effort. You could tell they wanted to get back (to Charleston),” Shady Spring head coach Ronnie Olson said. “When you know you have that ticket on the line and you are getting ready to go play in the storied Civic Center down there, they were ready to go.”
The game went sideways from the start for the visitors when two forced turnovers ignited a 6-0 Shady run.
A triple by Ammar Maxwell at the midway point gave Shady it first double-digit advantage, before the home team down-shifted and ran roughshod over the Indians.
After a 3-pointer from Tanner Griffith moved the game back inside double figures for the final team, the Tigers ran off 13 straight points and never looked back.
Jaedan Holstein started the run with back-to-back assists on a basket from Gavin Davis and a kick-out 3 for Cole Chapman.
Braden Chapman followed with two consecutive 3-pointers, one from the volleyball line near center court and Maxwell closed the run with a bucket for a 30-8 lead.
Brandon Connor’s 3-ball late in the quarter brought the Indians within 19 after the first quarter, but they would get no closer the remainder of the night.
“We just wanted to start strong and finish them off early,” Braden Chapman said. “We were really confident coming into tonight’s game.”
Braden Chapman’s fourth 3-pointer of the night midway through the third quarter gave Shady Spring 40-point lead and also sent the dynamic junior over 1,000 points for his career.
“To do it here and be able to take a timeout and give the recognition was awesome,” Olson said. “I was happy he got it today because he had been pressing a little bit.”
Chapman was all smiles after the game.
“Just a lot of credit to my teammates and all the hard work I have put in. They were finding me all night and I really appreciate them.”
Holstein led the Tigers on the night with 19 points, while Braden Chapman scored 18 and Cole Chapman had 16. Maxwell was steady again with 15 points on the night.
Making the dominant win even more impressive was the fact that Shady Spring played without a key starter in Cameron Manns.
“Cam hurt his foot, but we could have played him. We decided to rest him a little bit (instead). He wanted to play, but I told him, let’s see how it goes,” Olson said. “He will be ready to go for that run in Charleston.”
The winner of Shady Spring and North Marion game will play again Friday night, March 18 at 7:15 p.m. against the winner of Wheeling Central Catholic and Grafton.
“I am not going to underestimate any opponent, but we knew if we took care of business, we were going to win tonight. The way we won surprised me, but here we are,” Olson said. “Everything we talked about at the beginning of the season, doesn’t happen much as a coach. Every goal that we wanted, we were able to check them all this season. (We own a) 20-game win streak coming in to try and defend our title and cut down another net in (a little over) a week.”
The Class AAA state championship game will be played Saturday, March 19 at 5:30 p.m.
S: 11 11 7 7 – 36
SS: 30 23 20 16 – 89
Sissonville
Jalen Breckenridge 12, Ben Smith 8, Tanner Griffith 8, Ivan Jackson 2, Brandon Conner 6. Totals: 14 1-3 36.
Shady Spring
Braden Chapman 18, Cole Chapman 16, Jaedan Holstein 19, Ammar Maxwell 15, Sam Jordan 3, Gavin Davis 6, Jalen Bailey 4, Ty Austin 4, Nathan Richmond 12, Khi Olson 2. Totals: 38 4-6 89.
3-pointers – S: 7 (Breckenridge 2, Smith, Griffith 2, Conner 2); SS: 9 (B. Chapman 4, C. Chapman 2, Maxwell 3).
