Scoring points may be sexy, but defense wins basketball games — and tournament titles.
Friday night's Best of Preps champions, the Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe girls and the Baylor boys, did their best work on the defensive end to earn the prestigious tournament titles at Chattanooga State.
LFO's Lady Warriors forced 19 turnovers and used two big offensive runs to defeat Baylor, 64-48, and repeat as champs.
In the boys' title tilt, Baylor clamped down on high-scoring rival McCallie to win a defensive slugfest, 45-35.
Tournament MVP Christina Collins scored 26 points to lead LFO (13-0), which never trailed after taking a 10-3 lead in the first four minutes and a 17-8 edge after the opening period. The Lady Red Raiders (5-6) used some tight defense of their own to get within seven by halftime, but the Lady Warriors took control in a dominating third period that featured the team's defensively suffocating trio of guards: Collins, sister Christen Collins and Angel Simmons.
"We just wanted to play hard for the entire 32 minutes," winning coach Dewayne Watkins said. "I watched them on film and, man, are they good. They are well coached and have a lot of good players, so I was a little nervous coming in.
"At halftime we just told them they weren't going to lay down, so if we don't step it up a little bit we would find ourselves on the losing side. Defense is what we're built on, and that's where we won it tonight."
The lead was seven two minutes into the second half when LFO went on a killing 17-0 run, with Christina Collins scoring 10, six coming on a pair of 3-pointers, and Christen Collins twice diving into the lane for baskets, one resulting in a three-point play.
While Baylor continued to press and play hard behind hard work inside from Hadleigh Worton (team-high 17 points) and Bella White (16 points, nine rebounds), the lead never got under 19.
Christen Collins added 14 points and Simmons 12 for LFO.
Baylor's boys came in well aware that McCallie had lit the nets on fire from long range during the first two days of the event, including a tournament-record 18 3-pointers in the opening round, so coach Mark Price's staff focused on defending the perimeter.
The game plan worked as the Blue Tornado (7-7) hit just two bombs in the first half as the Red Raiders (5-4) built a 23-12 lead, thanks in part to a 8-0 run to end the half that included 3-pointers from Joao Rego and Brock Barton.
Baylor built that lead for the most part without leading scorer — and tournament MVP — Zane Restelli and fellow starter Evan Haynie after each picked up two early fouls.
"The other guys really stepped up," Price said. "If you would have told me Isaiah Whaley would be out with injury and we had those guys in foul trouble in the first half, I would have said it would be hard to win. TJ Fields, Brock Barton, guys who have been role players in our program, are coming into more pertinent roles. They are the reason we won tonight."
The win wasn't without drama, though, as the Tornado finally caught fire midway through the third quarter with five 3-pointers, three of them by Kolin Claridy. His last cut the lead to one 45 seconds into the final quarter, but McCallie would score only two points over the next four minutes as Baylor regrouped defensively and used back-to-back 3s from Restelli and Rego to stretch the lead back out.
Jack Shutters led Baylor with 10 points, with Restelli adding nine and Barton seven. Claridy topped McCallie's list with 16.
Girls' all-tournament team: LFO — Christina Collins (MVP), Christen Collins, Angel Simmons; Baylor — Bella White, Hadleigh Wharton, Sloane Watson; Signal Mountain — Cassidy Pawson, Carlee Lowry; East Hamilton — Niya McGhee; Meigs County — Tally Lawson.
Boys' all-tournament team: Baylor — Zane Restelli (MVP), Evan Haynie, Jack Shutters; McCallie — Parker Robison, Kolin Claridy, Guillaume Bogaert; Tyner — Nehemiah Bloodsaw, Rodney Henderson; Brainerd — Boo Carter; East Hamilton — Juan Bullard.
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com.