CLEVELAND, Tenn. - With a holiday championship plaque on the line, lock-down defense and a strong distribution of the wealth helped Cleveland High School claim even more bragging rights than normal in a crosstown rivalry boys' basketball clash.
After watching his Blue Raiders win their sixth straight contest, while improving to 9-0 in tournament-style play in the regular season, coach Jason McCowan raved about what he saw from a senior leader in a 68-48 win over Bradley Central inside Raider Arena on Friday night.
Matched with a difficult defensive assignment, 5-foot-11 guard Isaiah Johnson did not back down from a 6-5 post threat in Tray Curry. Going one-on-one with the Southeastern Conference football recruit for most of the night, Johnson helped limit Curry to six points as the fourth quarter began with an 18-point lead for the "Big Blue."
"I think Isaiah can guard anybody," McCowan said. "He is so physically strong and plays so hard. He gave up a lot of size against a kid tough to push around in the post. Isaiah can be a one-man press for us at times. You have to give him a lot of credit. All of our guys helped him out tonight, too."
After scoring 20 or more points in his past three games, Johnson scored 11 first-half points and played with focus and passion on the defensive end.
The Blue Raiders (14-4, 2-2 District 5-AAA) again won with a guard-heavy lineup that played with control and power.
Proving to be one of the most dangerous point guards in East Tennessee, JaCobi Wood reached his season averages with 20 points and six assists. His knack to see the open man down the court and quick-step to the basket were flashed throughout.
Wood provided a no-look assist to Kley McGowan for a layup in the first half, which ended with a 36-27 Cleveland lead. Then the 6-2 point man outscored Bradley 9-4 himself in the third quarter.
"This is a game we look forward to playing every year," Wood said. "We want to let other teams know we are still a strong team. Even though we are short-handed, don't count us out. Coach told us if we play together we can beat any team in the district. We have all become closer over the past few weeks."
Kley McGowan was on the mark from distance as he contributed 15 points with three 3-pointers for the Blue Raiders. The lanky guard combined with fellow second-year teammate Grant Hurst for 15 points in the fourth quarter. Hurst finished with 16.
"We have been playing together as a team really well of late," Coach McGowan said. "We have a lineup of guards who can all get to the hoop and shoot from outside. It makes us hard to defend. JaCobi has also led us really well, and his court vision is phenomenal."
Playing its 11th game on the road in 14 contests, Bradley Central (8-6, 1-3) struggled to get into a rhythm offensively. Curry finished with eight of his 14 points in the fourth quarter, while freshman Quante Berry finished with 10 points.
The Bears have now lost five straight to their archrival.
"Our guys played really well in a great atmosphere," Coach McCowan said. "Our kids took great shots and really high quality ones. We played with great passion tonight."
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6311. Follow him on Twitter @PMacCoon.