TRENTON, Ga. – Even a basketball team with six seniors occasionally needs a not-so-gentle reminder that there are few gimmes, especially on the road.
So it was with the Chattooga Indians, who entered Tuesday night’s game at Dade County with a 17-1 record, including a perfect 10-0 mark in Region 7-AA. After trailing 34-31 and being outplayed in every aspect by the Wolverines, Chattooga used the scintillating play of senior twin guards Isaiah and Isaac Foster to pull away for a 71-56 win.
“That first half woke us up,” said Isaac Foster, who hit three consecutive 3-pointers in the Indians’ third-quarter comeback. “Coach gave us that little chewing and we came out and played hard.”
Coach Jared Groce’s team clinched the region tournament’s No. 1 seed and earned the right to host the event. The seed also gives the Indians a bye into the semifinals and an automatic berth into the state tournament.
“I couldn’t be more proud of them for securing the No. 1 seed in 7-AA, and it means a lot to do it here against a very good Dade County team,” Groce said. “Dade plays so well here, and they play so hard and they have great shooters. They came out hot, and I’m glad we were able to answer that in the second half.”
Dade (9-13, 6-5), which had won six consecutive league games, led 18-14 after one period and increased the lead to 25-17 two minutes into the second quarter following consecutive 3s from Eric Counts and Thumper Blake. That lead grew to 34-25 after a nearly uncontested drive from Colton Graham, causing Groce to call a timeout.
The Wolverines hit four 3s in the half, while the Indians were blanked from behind the arc until Isaiah Foster nailed one that turned into a four-point play with 48 seconds left in the half. Jay Shropshire followed with a short jumper to cut the halftime lead to three.
That momentum remained with the visitors in the third as Isaac Foster’s three straight treys lifted the Indians to their first lead since the opening minute, 40-38. Five quick points from Counts, though, brought Dade back up three, but Chattooga went on a 10-0 run over the next three minutes to seize a 50-46 lead heading into the final eight minutes.
“We really didn’t change anything in the second half, just the intensity we played with,” Groce said. “I thought there was excellent senior leadership tonight. We have six seniors on this team, and at halftime tonight they were encouraging.”
Isaiah Foster then took over, starting the period with a 3-pointer, assisting on layups for Shropshire and Devin Price and then hitting another trey as the lead quickly grew to 60-48. Dade got no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
“It’s always big to come up to Dade County and win a game,” Isaac Foster said. “Their whole team can shoot, so we didn’t want to go full-court press too much because they would have open shots. Our half-court press really worked in the second half.”
Isaiah Foster lead the Indians with 21 points and five steals, while Shropshire added 15 points and Isaac Foster scored 12. Wood topped Dade with 14 points and 10 rebounds, with Blake adding 13 points and Counts 11.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296; follow on Twitter @youngsports22.