It's the season to share, and the Brainerd boys' basketball team is buying into it, making a happy man of coach Levar Brown.
The Panthers used a suffocating defense and pass-first offense to smother Soddy-Daisy 83-36 in the first round of the Times Free Press Best of Preps tournament Wednesday at Chattanooga State.
Brainerd (8-2) scored the game's first 11 points, led 18-1 halfway into the first period and ended it with a 27-3 lead.
"I did not anticipate this at all," Brown said of the blowout. "I anticipated us starting as well as we did because we have been emphasizing that over the past few games because, for some reason, our kids think they are a second-half team.
"I'm very pleased with the way we shared the ball. Of the three teams I've had here, this one enjoys sharing the ball the most and tonight was as well as we've done that this year."
Twelve Panthers scored, led by junior Jesse Walker's 16 points and 12 each from Jamaul Herman Jr. and Vesta Melvin Jr. Eleven Brainerd players had at least one steal, paced by guard Kentrell Evans' four, forcing the Trojans (1-9) into 25 turnovers, with most of those resulting in layups.
A Walker three-point play with just less than two minutes left in the first half pushed Brainerd's lead to 39-5, and three consecutive 3-pointers by Melvin in the third period made it 61-15.
While thrilled with the win, Brown was already thinking about tonight's semifinal against Tyner (8-0), a 50-41 winner against Baylor (3-2) in the first round.
"I love the rivalry, but I love it when it counts," Brown said of facing the fellow Region 3-2A team. "Both teams are going to go out and play hard. They really looked hungry today. That was the first time I've seen them this year, and they were impressive. I would prefer to play them in February and hopefully March, but we'll be ready tomorrow."
Jacob Flipper had a game-high 18 points for Soddy-Daisy, with Josh Perez adding 11.
The Trojans will face Baylor in this morning's consolation round.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.