Kendrick Lloyd shared a special embrace with Red Bank boys’ basketball head coach Nick Fike after Tuesday night’s dramatic 58-54 overtime victory in the TSSAA Region 3-AAA semifinals against Maryville Heritage.
After losing their past eight region semifinals appearances, the Lions broke through that barrier as they kept their composure down the stretch to advance to their first region championship game since the 2008-09 season.
Now, Red Bank (26-7) will try and take down South Doyle at 7 p.m. Thursday at East Ridge High School for the program’s first region title since the 2007-08 season.
“This is a big win,” Fike said. “It has been awhile since we had a substate appearance or played for a region championship. The region semifinals had really been a crutch for us. We had lost some heartbreakers and for us to get past this stage and get two more games is a big weight lifted off our chest for sure. We control our destiny from here.”
On a night where the Lions missed 14 free throws, junior point guard Jaylen Rice provided a game-changing spark late in the fourth quarter that carried on to overtime. His strip steal and score took back the lead with just over four minutes left in the fourth quarter. Rice also scored the first five points of overtime, which included his second 3-pointer off Kendrick Lloyd’s sixth assist.
Rice’s energy and playmaking has spread throughout the team, especially after answering a call from his coach to elevate his game after a Best of Preps tournament loss to Tyner before the New Year.
“Coach Fike sparked a fire in me during the Best of Preps,” said Rice, who scored 11 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter and overtime Tuesday. “That was my wake up call. This team is super motivated and we believe we have the team to bring Red Bank basketball back to state. This win feels really good. Now, we really want to win a region championship.
“It’s been a long time coming.”
Red Bank drew four charges in the victory and also received a typical star performance from senior Anthony Bonner. The 6-foot-3 wing picked apart Heritage (18-15) with his isolation scoring ability in the third quarter, where he scored 10 of his game-high 22 points. It was the 23rd time this season Bonner has scored at least 20 points in a game.
After struggling to sink free throws throughout regulation, the Lions drained 6-of-8 from the charity stripe in overtime, with Landon Crutcher and Rice combining to go 5-for-6.
“I have said from the get-go, I think we have one of the best teams in the area,” Fike said. “I believe that and these guys believe in themselves as well. When things got tight down the stretch, you didn’t see anybody fold. You saw a bunch of confident guys. That’s something that has been built over time. We have a group that is hungry.”
Running off the court with his hands held high, Lloyd and the Lions will have a chance to bring back more hardware on Thursday night against South Doyle (19-10).
A memorable season for Signal Mountain (19-11) came to a close in Tuesday’s other semifinal with a 62-58 loss to South Doyle. Senior point guard Andrew Matukewicz, who was the district co-MVP with Bonner, scored 21 points, while junior Christopher Kennedy added 16.
“This was our best season since our district championship team in 2018,” Signal Mountain coach Steve Redman said. “Andrew was amazing for us this year and he has been such a great leader for this program. He averaged 17.5 points and five assists for us and is an absolute dude.”
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.