The Central High School basketball teams begin their postseason with a Class 2A District Tournament championship sweep of the host Vian squads last Thursday night at B.J. Traw Gymnasium.
The Tigers defeated the Wolverines 67-61 after the Lady Tigers downed the Lady Wolverines 64-23.
The Central squads ended their regular season on President’s Day night with a road split against Eufaula, as the Lady Tigers beat the Lady Ironheads 50-34 but the Tigers fell 66-51.
In the boys’ district title game, the Tigers (14-9) led wire to wire, leading 13-8 after a period, then getting as great as a 26-14 lead thanks to Brycen Chandler-Eisman’s 3-point basket with 2:55 left before halftime. Central led 3121 at the break.
Central got as high as a 12-point lead on three occasions in the second half, the last time at 5240 with 6:25 left to play on a basket by Chandler- Eisman. The Wolverines cut their deficit to four points in the waning seconds, but the Tigers held on.
For the game, Randolph led Central with 26 points, followed by Noah Buzzard with 10 points, Aiden Cawhorn with nine points, Chandler- Eisman with seven points, Paitton Merrill with six points, Josh Brunk with five points and Jake Woods with four points.
In the girls’ district championship game, the Lady Tigers (14-10) scored the game’s first seven points before Vian’s Aliyah Tucker hit a 3-point basket with 4:49 left in the first quarter to get the Wolverines on the board, down 7-3. From there, it was all Central.
The Lady Tigers led 25-3 after a period, 43-7 at halftime and 54-13 after three quarters.
The Lady Tigers got as great as a 47-point lead on a conventional three-point play by Cambree Bair with 2:46 remaining to play to put them ahead 64-17.
For the game, Bair led all scorers with a game-high 22 points to lead Central, followed by Busch with 19 points, Paris Campbell with 17 points, Sara Williams with five points and Sarah Buchanan with four points.
In the girls’ win over Eufaula, the Lady Tigers jumped out to a 15-6 lead after a quarter en route to a 25-13 halftime advantage and a 40-18 lead going into the final period.
For the game, Central put a trio of players into double figures, led by Campbell with a gamehigh 18 points, followed by Bair with 13 points and Williams with 12 points. Busch scored four points, followed by Alivia Meadows with two points and Charlie Petree with a free throw.
In the boys’ loss to Eufaula, the Ironheads virtually led from start to finish, leading 14-6 after a quarter, 33-19 at the half and 54-38 going into the final period.
In defeat, Randolph scored 16 points and Brunk added 11 points to lead the Tigers, followed by Woods with eight points, Buzzard with seven points, Chandler-Eisman with three points, Cawhorn and Kiefer Bailey with two points each and Merrill and Ryder Justice with a free throw apiece.
The Central teams were slated to meet the host Hartshorne squads in the Class 2A Regional Tournament championship semifinals on Tuesday night in Hartshorne.
