CELINA, Tenn. - Marion County saw firsthand what has made Clay County's Tyreke Key a Mr. Basketball finalist.
Key, a 6-foot-2 junior point guard, put on a show Monday night, pouring in a career-high 46 points despite missing much of the second quarter with foul trouble as the Bulldogs beat the visiting Warriors 87-76 in a Class A boys' sectional game.
"I think he had 22 in the fourth quarter," Clay County coach Rob Edwards said. "That's just Tyreke Key. That's what you get with him. He's a great kid, a great teammate, and I wish we had five or six of him."
The loss ended an outstanding season for the Warriors (19-9), who made their deepest playoff run since 1987. The Bulldogs (31-2) advance to next week's Class A state tournament.
"The boys are upset because we lost this game," Marion County coach Chuck Keef said. "I told them, 'I'm glad to see that.' That means that it meant something to them. Just to be able to be here and be a part of it, it's been 29 years since we've played in a substate or sectional game.
"We're proud to be here and we would have liked to have gone one step further and get to play in Murfreesboro," Keef said, "but it is what it is. I felt like we laid everything on the floor. We don't have any regrets."
Logan Walters topped the Warriors with 29 points and eight rebounds, while Kane Hale and Matt Harveston added 14 points each.
After falling behind by 15 (46-31) in the third quarter, the Warriors slowly chipped away, eventually getting within six at 78-72 on Walters' three-point play with 1:19 left. From that point, Clay County made eight of 12 free throws to ice the victory.
The Warriors trailed just 27-26 after Harveston made a pair of free throws with 5:29 left in the second quarter. Those free throws came after Key was assessed a technical foul - his second overall foul - after it was ruled that he held onto the rim on a dunk attempt.
Key left for the rest of the half, but the Bulldogs went on an 8-2 run, taking a 35-28 advantage on Dawson Russell's three-point play.