TMSAA Class A State Tournament: Jr. Bulldogs blast past Smith County for championship berth

Published 10:51 pm Friday, February 8, 2019

By Bryce Phillips

MURFREESBORO—The Jr. Bulldogs were firing on all cylinders at the right time Friday.
Hampton kept a sizable lead throughout as they topped Smith County, 47-37, during the first-ever TMSAA Class A Boys State Tournament.
“We came here and said that we wanted to do exactly what got us here,” said Hampton head coach Dewayne Humphrey. “We wanted to play hard and win the 50-50 balls. We wanted to turn this into a home game for us and get the crowd excited. Anytime Johnathan (Greenwell) or Austin (Bentley) gets to one of the 50-50 balls that gets us going. We fed off that.”
The win gave the Jr. ‘Dogs a shot at the state championship which was played Saturday morning inside Stewart Creek High School.
“We are super excited,” said Humphrey. “I am excited for these kids and excited for these coaches. This is great for our community. We have two Carter County teams in the finals. It is an extraordinary opportunity for all of us.”
The Jr. Bulldogs were led in scoring by Austin Bentley who dropped in 20 points. Hampton Dylan Trivett followed up with ten points while Johnathan Greenwell posted eight. Jr. Bulldogs Cadon Buckles chipped in four points as Chance Point and Brody Hicks each had two.
In the first frame, the Jr. Bulldogs went on a 9-point run to take a 12-2 lead. Bentley posted seven of the points while Hicks had a two. A last-second layup from Greenwell gave Hampton 14-6 heading into the second quarter.
The second period saw Hampton outscore Smith County 11-5 to take a 25-11 lead into the half. Bentley posted six points in the second while Greenwell had three points.
In the third quarter, Trivett made a steal and took it down the court for a bucket-and-one which gave Hampton a 26-15 lead with 4:09 left in the third. Buckles had three straight points to help the Bulldogs take a 32-22 lead before Trivett hit a 3-pointer to give Hampton a 35-24.
The fourth saw Smith post 13 points to Hampton 12 as the Bulldogs battled to keep ahead. Big defensive plays, which included a big block from Jr. Bulldogs Hayden Campbell, would help Hampton to a victory.

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