Telegraph Staff Writer
Clay outscored the Bradford High School junior varsity team 22-6 in the fourth quarter to hand the Tornadoes a 55-38 loss on day two of the Lake Area McDonald’s-Kiwanis of Starke Christmas Basketball Tournament on Dec. 17 at BHS.
Mattox Burgin made three three-pointers in a neck-and-neck first half that saw the Tornadoes (0-3) go into halftime trailing 21-20.
Bradford got off to a quick start in the third quarter. Willie Pollard scored a basket in transition, while Journie Sampson added another bucket to put the Tornadoes ahead 24-21. Two-point and three-point baskets by Race Black and Jordan Thomas, respectively, helped Bradford maintain a slim lead, but a 6-0 spurt put the Blue Devils ahead 33-29. Burgin made his fourth three-pointer of the game to send the Tornadoes into the fourth quarter trailing by one point.
A basket by Sampson off a nice pass by Trejan Tyson interrupted a 6-0 run by Clay to start the fourth. The Blue Devils, though, made two three-pointers, sandwiched around two Pollard free throws, to go up by nine. The long-distance shots were part of a 13-2 run.
Burgin led Bradford with 12 points, while Sampson had eight. Pollard and Black scored six and five points, respectively, with Thomas scoring three. Charles Barnes and Mikey Oliver each added two points.
The final day of the tournament tips off today at 4 p.m., with the Tornadoes taking on Riverside.
