MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – For the second straight day Brainerd fought back from a double-digit deficit in the second half at the state basketball tournament. But unlike their semifinal rally, the Panthers were not able to complete the comeback, losing 59-50 to Fulton in the Class AA championship game Saturday night.
The Panthers led early, but a 21-6 run by the Falcons in the second quarter gave the Knoxville team a 14-point halftime lead.
“They brought the fight to us in the second quarter,” Panthers third-year coach Levar Brown said. “That quarter won the ballgame for them. It killed us. It was a lack of focus and desire on our part, but we corrected it and came back out in the second half and gave ourselves a chance.”
Brainerd picked up the pace in the third, ending the quarter on a 7-0 run to cut the lead to six. The Panthers (30-6) pulled within one on a Malik Beavers free throw with three minutes remaining, but Fulton ended the game on a 10-2 run to claim its third state championship, and first since 2009.
“We put as much pressure on them as we could in the second half, and it paid off and got us back in it,” said Panthers junior point guard Kentrell Evans, who finished with 10 points and five assists and was named to the all-state-tournament team along with teammates Jesse Walker, who led all players with 23 points and 13 rebounds, and senior Dejuonta Ross.