"Defense! Defense! Defense!" chants from the Red Bank fans rang throughout the gym Friday evening after the Lady Lions took a 45-39 lead on junior Raijeria Bell's left-corner jump shot with 4:08 to play.
On Signal Mountain's home court, the two-time reigning District 6-AA champions would have none of it. The host Lady Eagles scored the last dozen points for a 51-45 victory in front of a lively crowd.
A day after her brother, Jay Hardy, used his defensive prowess on the football field to help McCallie win the Division II-AAA state title, Jaylah Hardy swiped a pass at midcourt and drove the left baseline, making her layup while drawing a foul to help jump-start the late comeback.
There was no second-half answer for Signal Mountain's Olivia Koontz, who sank midrange jumpers sometimes over two defenders and fought her way to the free-throw line, where she was 9-of-12.
Koontz swished a shot from the right elbow and sank the go-ahead free throw with 1:37 left as the 6-foot-1 post scored 17 of her game-high 21 points in the second half.
"Every time we face each other, we all play super hard. Even if we don't play great, we get after it," said Koontz, who recently got her first college scholarship offer from Eastern Kentucky. "We didn't play that well, but we pulled it out, and that's what it comes down to at the end of the day. Once we figured out how to get the ball inside, we could make a move or draw fouls."
In a meeting that has been the District 6-AA championship game the past two seasons, Red Bank came into the showdown with a 7-0 record and a Thanksgiving tournament championship.
The Lady Lions collected numerous offensive rebounds early but made just two of their first 18 shots. Then Bailey Lee asserted herself in the paint, scoring eight quick points in the second quarter. Lee, who has surpassed 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds while at Red Bank, posted up Koontz for a turnaround field goal to cut the deficit to 16-15.
Tied at 20 at halftime, Red Bank increased its momentum in the third quarter by doubling its points.
Running the floor with authority, sophomore point guard Savannah Washington scored eight straight for the Lady Lions. Washington had 13 points and four assists before drawing a technical foul with 1:50 left in the third quarter. She would not return to the court.
"Savannah is a great player with a bright future, but our team has picked up too many technical fouls early this season," Red Bank coach Bailey McGinnis said. "I tell our girls it's our job as coaches to handle the refs. So the next time we were T'd up, I told them they will have to sit the rest of the game.
"It's my job to teach these girls that there is a standard they have to play by. Some days it's about more than just basketball. It's not always easy to teach or learn the hard lessons."
Red Bank ended the third quarter with Bell sinking a 3-pointer and adding two more free throws for a 40-34 lead.
But Signal Mountain (5-1) calmly caught up and received a key offensive rebound from Janie Kennedy, who bounce-passed to Lamiah Walker to build a 48-45 lead with 1:34 left. Walker scored the last five points.
"I am happy to have a rivalry like this," Lady Eagles coach Kendra Bell said. "I think guts and composure will take you a long way, and our girls stepped up when they had to. Red Bank is a very solid basketball team, and we have several more battles in store."
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.