Tyner's Porchia Turner grabs a rebound as Heritage plays Tyner on Thursday during the Best of Preps basketball tournament at Chattanooga State.Heritage accomplished two goals Thursday in the school's first appearance in the Best of Preps basketball tournament. The Lady Generals, in cruising past Tyner 61-21, not only won their BOP debut but also believed they earned a little respect for the northwest Georgia area.
"We don't get to play in Chattanooga often, so we wanted to represent northwest Georgia and come out strong today," said junior guard Jada Hubbard, who dominated play on both ends with 24 points and 10 steals. "We had a lot of energy early, and I think we surprised them with our press. We like to play scatter basketball where we get our hands on a lot of passes."
Heritage (10-2) will face Baylor in a semifinal tonight at 7. Tyner (1-5) will face Signal Mountain at 1 p.m. in the consolation round.
With Heritage leading 8-2 five minutes into a sluggish start for both teams, Hubbard took control. She scored seven consecutive Heritage points and had four of her steals in the final two minutes of the period as the Lady Generals took a 15-4 lead after a quarter.
The lead continued to swell when she hit the second of four 3-pointers early in the second for a 20-4 lead, and Heritage closed the first half on a 10-0 run for a commanding 30-6 lead.
"We were a little winded at the beginning because we haven't played in a few days," Heritage coach Eddie Bryant said. "Hopefully tomorrow we won't lose that wind, because Baylor is a great program.
"Jada shot the ball well. She didn't shoot as well from outside last year, and she's turned into one of our best this year. She's also matured a lot since last year, and she's always been one of our best defensive players. When she wants to clamp down, as we saw today, she can do it."
Porchia Turner led Tyner with 13 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296.