BY CLIFF SMELLEY
The Bradford High School outscored Santa Fe 26-11 in the second half in winning the Gray bracket championship at Santa Fe’s True Force Shootout on Dec. 29.
Bradford (6-1) received a $500 prize after going 3-0 in the three-day event, which was held at Alachua’s Legacy Park Multipurpose Center. The tournament consisted of two boys brackets, with The Rock defeating Ocala Forest to win the Red championship.
A girls bracket was also part of the event, with Williston defeating Buchholz for the championship.
Steven Carter and Maliki Cobarris combined to score 12 points in the first quarter as Bradford entered the second quarter trailing 16-15.
Santa Fe (5-10) went on a 10-2 run to start the second quarter. Brody Sapp scored the quarter’s first points with a three-pointer, while Jeremiah Lee scored six points during the run as the Raiders built a 26-17 lead.
The Tornadoes answered with a 12-2 run to take a one-point lead into halftime. Kemontae Nixon scored off an offensive rebound and then made an awarded free throw. After a basket by Santa Fe’s Ethan Innarelli, Nixon scored again off a Jordan Cason assist. A Raiders turnover eventually led to a three-pointer by K.J. Taylor to narrow Santa Fe’s lead to three. Jy’Quez Cason had a layup off a Cobarris assist before Jordan Cason, following a Taylor steal, scored off a Carter assist to put the Tornadoes up 29-28.
Bradford scored the first nine points of the second half. Jy’Quez Cason scored off a Taylor assist, while Carter got a basket off a turnover. It was the first of five consecutive possessions in which Santa Fe turned the ball over. One led to a three-
pointer by Carter, while a steal by Jy’Quez Cason led to his own basket and a 38-28 lead.
The Raiders didn’t get on the scoreboard until Dantre Little made a free throw at the 2:17 mark of the third quarter.
Another three-pointer by Carter — his third of the game — put the Tornadoes ahead 41-29.
After a free throw by Innarelli, Santa Fe finally got a field goal in the second half when Bryce Carter knocked down a jumper with 55 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
Taylor and Jordan Cason each scored five points in the fourth quarter as Bradford maintained its double-digit lead.
Carter led the Tornadoes with 15 points, while Jordan Cason had 11. Bradford also got nine from Cobarris, eight from Taylor, six from Jy’Quez Cason, five from Nixon and one from Dylan Ruise.
Besides Bradford and Santa Fe, the eight-team Gray bracket also consisted of Bell, Belleview, Branford, Hamilton County, St. John Paul II and Taylor County.
The Tornadoes began their tournament play with a 67-34 win over Taylor County on Dec. 27.
A Cobarris three-pointer helped Bradford take an early 5-0 lead, while Taylor had three points during a 7-0 run to close out the first quarter, which ended with the Tornadoes leading 14-4.
Taylor’s Jacob Anderson hit a three-pointer to start the second quarter, but Cobarris answered with a trey of his own. That began a 10-0 Bradford run that included two baskets by Cobarris, one basket each from Carter and Nixon and free throw by Ruise that put the Tornadoes up 24-8.
Bradford added to its big lead in the third quarter, outscoring the Bulldogs 21-8. That included nine points from Taylor as part of a 14-2 run to close out the quarter. A Taylor basket got the run started. Cobarris scored on a drive to the basket and drew a foul. He made the awarded free throw to put the Tornadoes ahead 48-29.
Bryston Williams made two free throws and then had a steal on the defensive end, leading to a basket by Taylor. Taylor later scored and drew a foul, making the ensuing free throw to give Bradford a 26-point lead.
Bradford’s last offensive possession of the third quarter saw Taylor grab three straight offensive rebounds. He scored off the third to send the Tornadoes into the final quarter leading 57-29.
Jordan Cason scored six points in the fourth quarter to help get the final margin to 33 points.
Cobarris finished with 16 points, while Carter and Taylor each had 12. The Tornadoes also got seven points from Ruise, six each from Nixon and Jordan Cason, five from Williams and four from Jy’Quez Cason.
Bradford’s second game in the tournament wasn’t as easy, but the Tornadoes were able to pull out a 65-60 win against Hamilton County on Dec. 28.
Hamilton put together a 7-0 run to take a 17-9 lead in the first quarter. That included a four-point play when Hayden Tabor was fouled on a made three-point attempt.
The Trojans got two three-pointers from Cayden Merine and one from Tabor as they took a 30-20 lead in the second quarter.
Two free throws by Jy’Quez Cason and a Cobarris basket off a Carter steal helped Bradford cut its deficit to single digit, while a Williams basket before the buzzer sent the Tornadoes into halftime trailing 38-30.
Merine made a three-pointer to start the second half, giving the Trojans their eighth made shot from beyond the arc. They wouldn’t make another.
Hamilton got two baskets from Brandon Robinson as it built a 47-33 lead. The Tornadoes then closed out the third quarter with a 16-3 run. Jy’Quez Cason had two consecutive baskets to get the run started, followed by a Jordan Cason basket.
A three-pointer by Larry Ardley and a two-point basket by Jordan Cason off a Ruise steal pulled Bradford to within 49-44. A turnover led to a Jordan Cason basket off an Ardley assist, while a Ruise three-pointer following a Williams steal tied the score at 49-49 with 54 seconds left in the quarter. A free throw by Hamilton’s Kyle Brown sent the Trojans into the fourth quarter leading 50-49.
Nixon came up big in the fourth quarter with seven points. His rebound putback put the Tornadoes up 53-52. After a basket by Hamilton’s Robinson, Nixon scored off another offensive rebound, drawing a foul in the process. He made the awarded free throw to make it a 56-54 game in favor of the Tornadoes. Robinson had another basket for the Trojans, but a rebound putback by Nixon gave Bradford a 58-56 lead.
The Trojans only managed two free throws the rest of the way until Kavon Horne scored off an offensive rebound for the game’s final points. Bradford, meanwhile, got baskets from Carter and Jy’Quez Cason and three free throws from Jordan Cason.
Cobarris and Jordan Cason finished with 19 and 11 points, respectively, while Nixon and Jy’Quez Cason each had nine. Bradford also got five from Breion Johnson, three each from Ardley and Ruise and two each from Carter, Taylor and Williams.
The Tornadoes travel to play Bell on Saturday, Jan. 3, at 6:30 p.m. and then travel to Jacksonville to play Bolles on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at 7:30 p.m. Bradford will host P.K. Yonge on Thursday, Jan. 8, at 7:30 p.m. and Branford on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m.
On Tuesday, Jan. 13, the Tornadoes host Westside at 7:30 p.m.
